


I Don't Wanna Be Your Hero (I Just Wanna Fight With Everyone Else)

by Road_tama



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Female Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Happy Ending, Lots of plot, M/M, Slow Build, Tags May Change, There's plot, Torture, every time I think about this fic it gets longer, i make my characters suffer just be warned, it's a Love Ray built by villains, love bug au, the garrison trio are supervillains, the torture is mostly off-screen but I add the tag, they are not very good at it, well kind of
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-09
Updated: 2019-02-28
Packaged: 2019-04-20 20:26:46
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 60,079
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14268879
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Road_tama/pseuds/Road_tama
Summary: In Altea City, home of superheroes and villains, Lance McClain (Blue Wave) is your everyday supervillain trying to live his life stealing, having a part-time job as a waiter and rescuing animals from theGalaxy Garrison Centre of Investigation, with his partners in crime Pidge Gunderson (Green Glinch) and Hunk Garrett (Yellow, justYellow). All of this while trying not to get arrested by Voltron, the most famous team of superheroes.Lance’s life was relatively simple, but it got complicated when his villainous team decided to build a Death Ray to rob a bank that ended not being a Death Ray.Long short story: the Ray hit Takashi Shirogane AKABlack LightningAKA the leader of Voltron, theDeath Raywas actually aLove Ray, the hero fell in love with Lance and all got really complicated.Also there was something shady going on in the city.Welcome to Lance McClain’s life.HERO/VILLAIN AU





	1. When A Death Ray Is (Not) A Death Ray

**Author's Note:**

> **WARNING** (kind of): English is not my first language and ~~this is un-betaed, so there's probably a lot of mistakes even if I checked it~~ . Also, there will be slow updates because I write the chapters first in Spanish and them I translate them to english because it's easier for me, buuut... it means I spend much more time creating the chapter. So please, bear with me!
> 
>  **UPDATE** : This work is no longer unbetaed!! Thank you [exo_moon](https://archiveofourown.org/users/exo_moon/pseuds/exo_moon) for checking my work so I don't butcher completely english language.
> 
> **DISCLAIMER** : Voltron and its characters doesn't belong to me. This is purely for fun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, Earthlings! After checking and checking this chapter, i've finally decided to publish it!  
> This is my first Voltron fanfic, my first fanfic in english and this is un-betaed, so let's see how this goes. 
> 
> The origin of this fanfic comes from one little prompt for a Hero/Villan au: _“Death ray turned out to be a love ray and now my enemy won’t stop trying to date me”_.  
>  I actually tried to keep it short and fluffy but somehow it growed until it became a multichapered fanfic with angst and a plot. I swear I tried, I TRIED. 
> 
> I give life to this characters! Why they don't listen to me?
> 
> **EDIT (27/02/2019)** : I've edited the begining of the fanfic. I haven't changed much in relation to its contents, just the way it's written, and I have added more detailed descriptions about their superhero/villain suits.

 

**_Chapter 1 – When A Death Ray is (not) a Death Ray_ **

_“Let me go._  
_I don't wanna be your hero._  
_I don't wanna be a big man._  
_Just wanna fight like everyone else”._

_( **Family of the Year** – Hero)_

 

* * *

 

**_ALTEA, CITY OF HEROES_ **

**_Know more about the country that’s considered “the cradle of heroes”._ **

 

_This island of Australia’s size and located in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, is considered the most technologically advanced country of Planet Earth, surpassing even its neighbor countries as Daizabaal, Olkarion or EEUU._

_Although this country’s founders were Alteans, races from all over the planet live there: humans, olkari, balmerans ... even some Galra. Altea is one of the most multicultural countries in the world. A clash of cultures that reflect the different origins of its inhabitants_

_Altea is one of the main tourist destinations in the world, due to the contrast between its beautiful landscapes and ancient monuments, with the futuristic technology of its cities._

_(…)_

_It’s capital, Altean City, on the west coast of the island, is an architectonical masterpiece in which architects and engineers of all over the world worked. After the Great Fire that destroyed the city a century ago, the city was reconstructed in three levels that are supported by Altanium pillars, one of the strongest materials of the planet. The ~~superheroes~~ **assholes;** the ~~wealthy people~~ **even bigger assholes** and the family of the current president, Alfor of Altea **he’s cool** , live on the Upper Level. As for the rest of the people, they distribute themselves between Middle and Lower Levels_

**_Oh, look, they forgot to mention that most people of the Upper and Middle Levels think that the ones who live in the Lower Level are trash._ **

_But the reason why Altea is globally know, is because it’s the city of superheroes._

**_And villains, don’t forget the villains_ ** _._

_Maybe it’s because it was the first country to stop hunting the Gifted for their abilities **Oh, wow, they stopped killing Gifted twenty earlier than the rest of the world. Wow, let’s praise them! (sarcasm)** ; maybe it’s because of their advanced facilities or their ~~professionals~~ **torturers** , which help young Gifted to control their powers **are they referring to the Galaxy Garrison assholes? OMG, they are referring to the Galaxy Garrison assholes!** (…) However, everyone knows that, if you want to make yourself a name inside the superhero world, Altea City is where you have to go._

**_Yeah, give up your soul and become one of those jerks who patrol the streets in leotards._ **

_(_ _...)_

_Numerous groups of superheroes protect Altea **and harass poor villains** or the world, if the threat is big enough. In this issue, we will talk about four of the hero teams._

_Keep reading to know more._

_- Voltron (Go to page 15). **Hot people. Hot like burning. Nicer than other heroes** ~~~~_

_- Mystery League (Go to page 17). **They are okayest**._

_- Cosmic Squadron (Go to page 19). **Dumbasses. I don’t know how they became heroes**. **Or managed to not kill themselves.**_

_- Alpha Force (Go to page 21). **They deserve to be in prison even more than the villains they put away**._

 

* * *

 

“Lance! Stop ruining all my magazines!”

“I’m not ruining them, Hunk! I’m editing and correcting all the misinformation they trying to spread with their shitty magazine!”

“Well, stop doing that!”

“They are assholes! Pidge agrees with me!”

“What?”

“See? She agrees! I will not be silenced!”

“Lance! I want to be able to read a magazine without your scribbles all over it!”

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

 _“This is the definition of a BAD day,”_ thought Lance, jumping aside to avoid a fireball. It passed so close to his face that he would have sworn it had burned the tips of his bangs.

Lance should have guessed it was gonna be a bad day after being woken up by Pidge’s screams when she discovered _Laika_ nibbling the wires of one of her inventions. Or when Hunk had drunk all the coffee after spending the whole night trying to repair the closing mechanism of her room. He wasn’t superstitious, but maybe it would have been better not to leave the _Evil Lair_. But if Lance wanted his friends to finish the _Death Ray_ in this century, he needed to get the batteries.

And that’s why Lance was being chased on the elegant roofs of the _Upper Level_ by two members of team _Voltron_.

With no doubt, _Voltron_ was one of the most popular (and competent) group of superheroes. Over decades and since its creation during the city’s reconstruction, dozens of heroes had been part of the team. Different faces, different amounts of members, different powers… but there was something everyone agreed on: to be part of Voltron, you had to be one of the best Superheroes of your time. Maybe that was why Voltron currently had just three members.

 _Oh, shit,”_ cursed the villain while looming over the marble railing and gazing at the five floor fall that ended on a beautiful white fountain. _“I’m trapped.”_

The villain cursed while looming over the marble railing and gazing at the five floor fall that ended in a beautiful white fountain.

Lance felt _Harper_ writhing under his blue suit and letting out a squeak.

“Don’t worry _Harper_ , I’ve been in worse situations and i’m still here,” he muttered, trying to calm down the animal. “Please, don’t claw me.”

While Lance was trying to decide if he still had time to back up and use another building to go down, he heard the distinctive sound of two people landing a few steps away.

“Hand over the stolen batteries and turn yourself in, _Blue Wave,_ ” ordered an authoritarian voice at his back. “You have no escape.”

The villain made sure that his mask was in place and turned around.

Takashi “Shiro” Shirogane’s figure, better known by his Superhero name _Black Lighining_.

 **_Black Lightning_ ** _: current leader of Voltron and one of the few superheroes born without powers. According to the sad documentary of his life that the press retransmitted every year, he was captured during one diplomatic mission in Daizabaal by some rebels. During his imprisonment, his captors modified and inserted technology into his body. Black could activate his mechanical arm to cut into the hardest of metals or electrocute his enemies._

_A handsome young man with a heart of gold, cool powers and a tragic backstory: in conclusion, a favorite of the press. The vultures of the press really dig tragic backstories._

The villain was of the opinion that to wear spandex suits you should have a good body, and Shiro definitely had it. The skin-tight black suit molded to his muscles like a second skin and each movement short-circuited Lance’s mind. The rest of his attire was completed by black and silver breast platelets, vambraces, a belt, greaves and boots. And the cute mask that covered his eyes.

It made him look very heroic. And stripper-y.

“Thanks for the offer hot stuff, but I’ll pass,” he smiled, hoping the arrogance concealed his nervousness and internal drooling. “Is that a smaller suit? Send my regards to the designer.”

“For Alfor’s sake,” growled Keith Kogane, advancing menacingly. “Do you really have to do that everytime?”

 **_Red Flamethrower_ ** _: The youngest superhero that had ever joined the team. He could create fire and wrap his body in flames, but unlike other firebenders, Red had great control of his power and the number of accidental fires was pretty low, so he was very popular. Furthermore, his “mysterious attitude” and his refusal to answer questions seemed to charm the public._

Lance refused to call him _Red Flamethrower_ or _Red_ , especially when his new outfit suited him better than the previous one. With his black chest plate, red trousers and long sleeved shirt of the same color, his black boots and fingerless gloves; he looked like some kind of supercool anime ninja. Keith also wore a red headband that didn’t manage to hide his ridiculous mullet, which Lance constantly mocked.

“Don’t be jealous,” scoffed the villain. “When your body looks like _Black_ ’s, you’ll also receive my compliments.”

Keith’s mask covered half of his face but Lance saw clearly his expression of disgust. Shiro rolled his eyes with a soft flush on his cheeks that Lance really liked and drew out a pair of _Bhalman_ handcuffs, a material that blocked the prisoner’s powers once closed.

The Cuban boy felt a shiver while watching the pulses of energy come off the cuffs.

“U-usually I would be all over using c-cuffs in our little games,” commented Lance, moving backward until he felt the marble railing against his hips, “but I have lots of things to do, you know, places to rob, laws to break…”

“No way, you thief!” shouted Keith, grasping Lance’s arm. “You’re not going _anyw_ -!  _AH_!“

Keith backed up several steps, holding with his bleeding hand. _Harper’s_ head peeked from under Lance’s leather breastplate, hissing menacingly. Or as menacingly as thirty centimeters of animal could.

“Good boy.”

“So you not only did steal the batteries,” snarled the red hero, trying to cut the hemorrhage with one of his sleeves. “You also took one of the experiments.”

“I rescued him,” screamed Lance, defensively. “And don’t call _Harper_ that! He’s not an experiment! He’s… he’s… a monkey! Or a lizard! Well, he’s something with claws, scales and a tail!” The villain hugged the little hybrid against his chest and cooed. “Don’t listen to _Mullet-man_. You’re the most handsome boy on this side of the city.”

“You’ve named it?”

“Of course I named it! Every pet needs one!”

“What do you…? Of course you keep them,” mumbled Keith, exasperated. “You keep all of them, like the little tiger from last time.”

 _“Blue_ is a cat, you dumb mullet!”

A big cat with wings, but still a cat. Kind of.

“My name is _Red Flamethrower_!”

“I’m not gonna call you that! It’s stupid!”

“Less stupid than _Blue Wave_ ”.

“ _Blue wave_ is not stupid! I control water and turn it to ice! And my uniform is blue! So _Blue Wave_ it is,” yelled Lance, flipping him off. “The eighties called! They want their hair back”.

“Stop, you two!” intervened Shiro, separating them. “ _Red_ , don’t let him rile you. Patience yields focus. And you” Shiro fixed his eyes on the villain, tightening his grip on Lance’s wrist while shaking the cuffs in front of his face “are under arrest.”

_“Oh, quiznack!”_

Lance started squirming and kicking, trying to free himself, but it was like fighting against a stubborn wall. In other circumstances, that display of force would have turned him on, but the proximity of those quiznacking cuffs was freaking him out.

“Let me go!”

“Stay still!” huffed Shiro, after receiving a knee on his abdomen.

“No way!”

Maybe Lance was not as strong as him, but he wasn’t gonna makes things easy for the hero. Shiro grunted and changed his grip, crushing the villain against his chest as he tried to put the handcuffs on the squirming man.

“Red, grab his legs!”

However, Keith had his own troubles.

The exact moment _Harper_ felt the attack, he had jumped out of the suit and onto the red hero. Keith was trying to contain the little fluff of fury and his attempts of clawing his eyes off.

“Let me go!” kept screaming Lance, with the fear growing inside of him. “Let me go!”

He couldn’t go to prison, he couldn’t fall into the hands of the Galaxy Garrison Police, he couldn’t… he just couldn’t…

Lance’s eyes fixed on his salvation.

The villain stomped on the puddle, calling his power. Water droplets jumped like a dozen little grasshoppers to the hero’s face, who released Lance with a surprised yell.

Lance used his ability to freeze the water under Shiro and Keith’s feet, making them slip and fall ridiculously to the floor. He really hoped some TV camera had been able to record it.

 _Time to go,”_ Lance thought, grabbing Harper and skating to the edge of the rooftop. He knew that the heroes were gonna kick his ass the moment they were on his feet again.

Better not be here to suffer that.

“ _Hasta la_ later, heroes” shouted Lance, giving them finger guns.

Then he jumped.

 

*-*-*-*-*

Lance’s _Evil Lair_ was on the _Lower Level_ , under a big abandoned lab. Pidge’s dad had worked there about twenty years ago, until the city became so elitist and everything related to superheroes moved to the _Upper Level_.

The upper floors were uninhabitable: too much time, too many winters, and too many punks with a desire for destruction had passed. Nonetheless, it had three under-floors with good structures and broken machines the scientists hadn’t been able to transport.

And everything belonged to the _Evil Trio_ : Lance, Hunk and Pidge.

Hunk and Pidge, Lance’s best friends and partners in crime, were the ones who returned the electricity to the lab and repaired anything remotely technological, starting with the security doors and alarms. However, Lance was the one who took care of the decorations. He hadn’t been able to visit lots of other Supervillain’s bases, but he was pretty sure that their secret lair was the most elegant and stylish one in the whole city. 

When Lance opened the big metallic doors of the Evil Lair, his two friends started hovering over him: Hunk wanting to know what happened and Pidge asking for her precious batteries. With a sigh, the villain gave the girl her stolen prize and let himself be dragged to the blue sofa.

While Hunk searched inside the first aid kit, Lance took off his suit. First his brown fingerless gloves, boots and breastplate, and then his blue hooded sweatshirt, trousers and mask. The Cuban stuck out his tongue at Pidge when the girl laughed at his favorite boxers, the ones with little penguins printed on them.

“ _QUIZNAK_!” screamed Lance, almost jumping out of his seat when Hunk put the ice bag on his naked back. “A little warning, Hunk.”

“Was it really necessary to jump from five floors up?” scolded his friend, after Lance explained the incident with the heroes. “You still have trouble controlling big chunks of water. What if you didn’t manage to form the slide with the fountain’s water?”

“Then we would have had to steal his body from the morgue,” answered Pidge, absently, while examining the batteries. “And make a really awkward call to his mother.”

“But it went well,” whined Lance. “Except that it’s impossible to make an ice slide with a smooth surface. I was sure it would tear my back, but your suit has endured!”

“Of course it endured,” scoffed the girl, but was interrupted by a worried Hunk.

“And also you miscalculated the length of the slide and crashed against innocent bystanders.” 

“In the _Upper Level_ there are no innocent bystanders, only secretly evil bystanders!”

A crash alerted the three villains.

 _Blue_ had leaped on the table, throwing several tools to the floor. _Harper_ was perched comfortably on her back, as if she were a horse. The cat didn’t seem to mind, while she regally moved towards Lance, demanding her daily dose of petting.

“They seem to get along,” remarked Hunk, offering _Harper_ some kind of weird cookie from his pocket.

To the boy’s satisfaction, the lizard-monkey hopped on Hunk’s lap and started nibbling the cookie.

“You have to stop bringing new… guests.” commented Pidge, watching Hunk scratch _Harper’s_ belly.

“You know I can’t do that.” muttered Lance, hugging _Blue_ against his chest with a sad expression.

Although there wasn’t much space left in the _Evil Lair_ because of the increasing number of machinery and the areas that weren’t rehabilitated yet, the two lower floors were dedicated to the animals they rescued from the labs.

It was ironic that the _Galaxy Garrison Institute of Investigation_ worked for the “good ones” yet their scientists did such horrible experiments with animals. Creating new species, altering their bodies, chimeras… If they had worked for the “bad ones”, they would have been called “unethical”. However, the Garrison worked for Superheroes and “the future of the city” and they could do no wrong.

There was also the little detail of their amazing abilities to manipulate the press and keep their shady business in the shadows.

The first rescue had been by accident. Kind of.

Lance and Pidge broke into one of their labs without triggering any alarms. When they were leaving after stealing the materials they needed for their own base, they got lost and ended up in front of _Laika’s_ cage. She was a massive humanoid canine locked in a jail so tiny that she wasn’t able to stand up, and she was covered in tiny burns from electric sticks. Neither of the villains had the heart to leave her behind, even when their hurried escape triggered all the alarms and Hunk had to destroy a whole wing of the lab to let them out.

After that, each time they attacked a lab, they rescued and adopted all the creatures they found.

After _Laika_ came _Rover_ , a little mutant bird with damaged wings; to which Pidge built two mechanical wings, earning his eternal devotion. Later, it was _Kaltenecker_ , a cow who could alter the gravity around her and float several meters over the floor. There was also _Bae Bae_ , the chimera-dog; _Kova_ , the poisonous cat; the four superintelligent mice ( _Platt, Chulatt, Plachu, and Chuchule_ )… and so many others. 

The other villains had started to call their _Evil Lair_ the _Refuge_ or the _Adoption Agency_.

Jokes on them. Lance didn’t find it offensive at all.

However, all the rescues meant more creatures and more mouths to feed. Although they had managed to convince several villains to adopt some creatures, there were still too many of them.

“Yeah, you’re right,” murmured the girl, sadly. “But then, we’ll have to get more money. Even after _Nyma_ and _Rolo_ adopted _Beezer_ , we have already spent half of the month’s budget.”

“ _Annndddd_ … that’s why we have to rob the _West Altean Bank_ as soon as possible,” smiled Lance. “How is the _Death Ray_ going? Good? Great? Amazingly amazing?”

“It would go better if you brought us the suitable materials.”

“And where do you want me to find plutonium, _Pidgeon_? I’m not the Garrison, I can’t snap my fingers and make it appear. Or titanium. Or those weird wires you were looking for.”

“He’s right,” intervened Hunk. “We need money to get the suitable materials.”

“That we’ll get once we rob that bank, for which we’ll need the _Death Ray_.”

“That we’ll only be able to built if…”

“I get it!” Pidge cut them off, trying to hide her smile under a scowl. “I can’t believe I turned down _Lady Viper’s_ offer for this.”

“You did it because you _loooooveeeee_ us,” crooned Lance. “My friends… my buddies… my partners in crime… Will you build a Death Ray with the available materials? Will you work a miracle once more?”

“We will work a miracle once more.” answered Pidge, while Hunk nodded with enthusiasm.

“You’re the best.”

“We know.”

“But… couldn’t we change its name? I don’t really feel comfortable calling it a _Death Ray_.”

“The name is catchy,” replied Lance. “Don’t worry, Hunk, we aren’t gonna kill anyone. However… a cool invention needs a cool name.”

“Well, it is a cool name.”

“So… _Death Ray_ stays? Raise your hand if you agree.”

Three hands raised in the air.

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

The _Galaxy Garrison High School for Young Heroes_ , usually known as _Galaxy Garrison High School_ or _Elitist School for Young Sociopaths_ (even though this one was only used by Lance), was the most famous academy in the country to help young men and women to control their powers and turn them into “Proper Superheroes”.

They had formed the greatest heroes of our time, including all the members of _Team Voltron_. Past, present, and probably future ones.

If you succeed there, you’ll succeed everywhere.

It sounds like an idyllic place, full of people who believe in justice, and that’s what the press and the publishers of the GGHS will tell you. The reality was very different.

It was a place where they crushed you physically and psychologically, pushing you beyond your limits… until you broke. The teachers made you work like a machine and they destroyed any kind of self-esteem you had. The students fought each other like some kind of _Hunger Games_. If any person looked at the (real) figures of bullying, they would burst into tears.

Once the GG had destroyed you, they picked up the pieces and rebuilt you as they wished, transforming you into another puppet.

And for that reason, it was not surprising that the most terrible villains in the world had come from there.

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

Lance, Pidge, and Hunk had studied among heroes like Shiro, Allura, and Keith in the GGHS; but unlike them, they didn’t belong to the elites. The three villains were the targets of all the mockery and cruel jokes in the high school.

Technically as Katie Holt, daughter of the famous Dr. Holt, she could have been one of the most popular students in the whole place. However, she had signed up as _Pidge Gunderson_ precisely because she wanted to prove to herself and to the whole world that she could succeed on her own, not just because of her family. Therefore, she had been subjected to the same “ _VIP treatment_ ” that the rest of the plebs got.

Two scholarship students and “a nobody who’s too smart for her own good”; Between the rich people of the _Upper Level_ and the powerful bullies, it was only logical that they would end up bonding over their mutual hatred of the high school and would finally leave the GGHS to become villains.

The two years Lance spent studying in that high school was the reason he knew the real identities of most Superheroes, including the three members of _Team Voltron_. However, he doubted any of them remembered him.

Lance had always been jealous of Keith, because even if he was a “nobody”, he earned everyone’s respect with his great control of his fire powers. And Shiro had taken Keith under his wing since his arrival, so nobody would have dared to cough his way. Even if Lance had declared Keith his rival and started a bunch of stupid competitions with him, the Cuban boy doubted that Keith thought of him as anything more than a bother.

Then there was his tiny little crush on Allura. Beautiful, smart and one of the most powerful Superheroes in the whole city. Everyone was probably at least a little bit in love with her, and Lance wasn’t any different. He was completely gone since she saved him from a bunch of bullies that corralled him behind the gym.

And last, his big fat embarrassing crush on Takashi Shirogane.

Lance had admired him since he was a teenager who dreamed of becoming a hero. Shiro had also been the reason he had applied to the _Galaxy Garrison_ instead of any other school closer to Cuba. After he started in the GGHS, his feelings of admiration became a big crush, even if they hadn’t interacted much and he was pretty sure that Shiro didn’t even know he existed. Or at least until that Night in the Observatory, where Lance allowed himself to feel hope until the next morning, when the hero didn’t remember anything about him.

The _status quo_ didn’t change.

Talk about heartbreak.

But Lance McClain wasn’t the same fool that entered the Galaxy Garrison with his head full of dreams.

At least that was what he told himself.

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

“You told me you would work a miracle!”

“We built you a _Death Ray_ whose source of energy is plutonium, without plutonium!” growled Pidge, almost smashing her computer keys while trying to make the machine work. “It couldn’t be more miraculous.”

It was an easy plan.

The three villains had installed the _Death Ray_ on a rooftop in front of the _West Bank of Altea_. They only had to wait until the guards change at midnight before activating the _Death Ray_ to melt the vault’s wall. Then they would have the leeway to steal everything they could in a five minute period.

However, when the moment arrived, the _Death Ray_ wouldn’t even turn on.

It was an easy plan… why had it failed?

“ _Shhh_ , not so loud,” Hunk whispered nervously, while opening one of the panels to check the wires of the machine. “You’re gonna get us caught.”

“Our window is closing!” hissed Lance, releasing his binoculars. “Pidge, you assured me it would work!”

“I also told you it was too soon to use it!” protested the girl, putting on her green gloves. “And don’t call me Pidge, call me _Green Glinch_! I don’t want the whole city to learn my secret identity!”

Lance bit his tongue to avoid saying something he later would regret.

Neither of them was angry, just frustrated, because the news that the bank’s new security system was almost complete had made them accelerate the plan even though they all knew they weren’t ready.

 _I’m lucky to have her as my friend and not my enemy,”_ thought Lance, as he looked at the girl hidden under a green hoodie and a black leather mask that covered the lower half of her face. The mask had a lipless mouth with razor teeth painted on it and Lance found it really creepy and unsettling, but Pidge seemed to like it.

Looking at the girl hidden under her green hood and mask, he knew he was lucky to have her as a friend and not an enemy.

“And you, _Hun_ -… _Yellow_?”

“I don’t know, all the circuits are connected.”

Hunk’s power was superstrength. According to statistics, it was one of the most common powers, but that had never bothered him. Hunk never wanted to be a hero (or a villain). His biggest passions were engineering and cooking, and the only reason he joined Lance’s team was because his friends were gonna become villains regardless if he was there or not. Hunk felt calmer staying close to them, where he could help them.

As his favorite color was yellow and even though it was a pretty showy color for his line of work, Hunk chose that color for his suit and his superhero name. The villains wore a one-piece suit in soft yellow and orange colors, with tons of pockets. However, the mask that covered his eyes, his gloves and his boots were all black. Hunk, always practical, also wore a utility belt where he carried his tools.

Lance suggested new “supercool” names every few days, but Hunk refused them every time. “ _Yellow”_ was short, easy and sounded good. Why would he need another name?

“I found the failure!” announced Hunk, showing a nibbled wire. “I think _Blue_ was a little over-enthusiastic when helping me.“

Hunk grabbed his tools and started manipulating the wires. A few seconds later, he closed the panel and raised his thumbs, giving them the go ahead.

But before any of them could react, the _Death Ray_ activated and shot to the sky. The light ray exploded in the air like fireworks, illuminating the horrified faces of the three villains in a soft pink hue.

“I think the switch needs to be recalibrated again,” remarked Hunk. “Can we panic now?”

“Pick everything up!” yelled Pidge while she put her laptop in a backpack. “Half of the city must have seen that ray! Soon we’ll have all the Superheroes in the city on our asses!”

“Calm down, guys. I’m pretty sure _Voltron_ is too busy posing for the press or doing some kind of swimsuit ad to worry about petty criminals like us.”

“I’m glad you hold us in such a high esteem, _Blue Wave_.”

Lance screamed, turning swiftly to see Shiro three steps away, arms crossed and his expression between amusement and disapproval. Keith was by his side, much less amused, probably remembering his last encounter with _Harper_.

And then, Allura, superhero name _Lapis Lazuri_ , climbed the fire escape, scaring the lights out of the villains and blocking their exit.

 **_Lapis Lazuri_ ** _: Daughter of Alfor of Altea, first leader of Voltron, and the only member of the team whose civilian identity was known. However, her presence on the team had nothing to do with who her parents were. As she was Altean, she was stronger and faster than any human, but she was also able to alter her physical size and shrink to several centimeters or grow several meters for a limited time, because that changes put a strain on her body._

The woman was as beautiful as Lance remembered, but also as dangerous. Allura wore a skin tight pink undersuit and a white armor that protected her thorax, her shins and her forearms, but left her enough movement for fast attacks. Her hair was on a pigtail and her hand caressed the belt, near her weapon: a retractable staff, capable of knocking off an adult Galra if you were skilled enough.

And Allura was _really_ skilled.

 _“Quiznak_!” yelped Lance. “How did you get here so fast?”

“We were at the bank’s hall, rehearsing for the inauguration of the new security system,” answered Shiro. “We heard your cursing after the _Death Ray_ failed the first time.”

 _“Death Ray_? What _Death Ray_?” yelled Hunk, sweating and trying needlessly to cover the huge machine with his body. “We were just… stargazing.”

“That’s right!” shouted Pidge, even though his hands were full of incriminatory material. “Is it illegal to watch the stars?”

“If so, I wouldn’t mind going to jail,” intervened the blue villain, sending Shiro a flirty smile and a wink. “Because, _Black_ , I think you might also be a star… because I can’t stop orbiting around you.”

An incredulous silence fell over them.

Everyone looked at Lance like he went mad, but he didn’t mind. It was difficult to see in the darkness and with Shiro’s mask on the way, but Lance saw the light blush on the hero’s cheeks.

Takashi Shirogane, leader of Voltron and most of Lance’s fantasies, was _BLUSHING_.

Lance decided that it was a good look on him.

“Or maybe you’re the moon, because even in this darkness, you seem to glow.”

“Why are you like this.” groaned Pidge, facepalming.

 _“Hey_ , guys…”

“Or perhaps the Sun, because you’re the center of my universe.”

“Oh, my God, _Blue_! This is not the time!”

“I think… I think there’s something wrong…”

“I think I must be the Sun and you must be Earth, because the closer we get, the hotter you…”

“Enough!” interrupted Allura, startling everyone. “Stop all this nonsense! This is not a game! You are arrested for attempted robbery, for building an illegal _Death Ray_ …”

“Seriously, guys… something’s happening with the _Ray_ …”

“…for building the Death Ray with STOLEN pieces, for harassing a member of my team…”

“I was just complimenting him!”

“Guys… the _Ray_ is doing weird things…”

“…for attacking another member of my team with an animal…”

“He insulted _Harper_!”

“EVERYBODY DOWN!” screamed Hunk.

Lance just had time to turn around and see how the Death Ray, glowing and screeching, aimed at him and shot.

Two hands grabbed him and pushed him…

…moving him away from the ray’s path…

…which hit Shiro on the chest…

…and sent him flying several meters…

…to crash into the brick wall of the building.

He fell to the floor and didn’t move again.

Lance was aware of the voices shouting Shiro’s name but he could only hear the frantic beating of his heart as he got up and ran towards his hero.

 _“Nononononono…”_ was his only thought, as he kneeled beside Shiro _“Don’t be dead, don’t be dead…”_

Why had Shiro saved him? What kind of stupidity had made Shiro risk his life to save Lance’s? He was just another villain in the big city. And he wasn’t even a good villain!

Lance fought against the tears, feeling so much guilt that he was almost choking on it.

The _Death Ray_ was his! He should be the one lying on the rooftop, possibly dying, instead of Shiro! He didn’t want to be responsible for the hero’s death! He… he didn’t want to be responsible for anybody’s death.

The Cuban boy hadn’t realized he had been caressing Shiro’s hair until someone grabbed him and dragged him away from the hero. He found himself staring into Keith’s furious eyes.

“You killed him!” howled the red hero, shaking Lance. “Son of a _Vogon_ , you killed him!”

“I…”

“I knew I should have turned you into ashes a long time…!”

“RED, STOP!” ordered Allura. “He’s not dead.“

“W-what…?” shuttered Lance, looking at the girl, who was crouched beside Shiro and checking his pulse.

The villain didn’t know what Allura saw in his face, maybe the tears or the hope in his eyes, but her face softened and she repeated the words in a kinder voice.

“Shiro isn’t dead, just unconscious.”

“Thank Alfor!” cried out Hunk, sniffing. “I knew we should have tried to steal plutonium! Restructuring the batteries so they would work with electricity made them too _unsta_ …!” The young man fell silent at Allura’s stare. “I-I didn’t want to say that! I was referring to…”

Lance didn’t bother to listen to Hunk’s excuses. The red hero had already freed him to check by himself that Shiro was alive, so nobody stopped Lance when he knelt down aside the hero’s unconscious body, in spite of Keith’s warning look.

The _Death Ray_ should have made Shiro explode into a thousand pieces, but the villain, now out of his panicked state, realized that the hero’s armor was whole. Little threads of smoke arose from it, but they were already fading.

Pidge was right when she said that using shitty materials would lead to shitty results, although Lance couldn’t be more relieved not having listened to her.

“What kind of villain is worried about the hero he tried to kill?” asked Keith, looking at him with curiosity.

“I didn’t try to kill Shiro! It was an accident!” shouted Lance, outraged. “And what kind of hero threatens to burn someone to ashes?”

Keith’s response was interrupted by Shiro’s moan.

They both turned to the young Japanese man while he grasped his head with a wince. Lance leaned forward, heart in his throat and wondering if he finally crossed the line. Until now they had just been committing robberies and wreaking havoc, but his _Death Ray_ could have killed somebody.

Lance didn’t miss the irony of the situation: a villain worried about a hero hating him.

He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn’t realize Shiro had woken up until he found himself staring into his grey eyes.

“Shiro!” screamed the villain. “Are you okay? How are you feeling? Any weird sensations or sounds? Do you smell burnt toast? Do you…?”

“I’m fine” answered Shiro, grabbing one of Lance’s flailing hands and resting it against his chest. “Even better after seeing you, _Blue Eyes_.”

Lance blinked once, twice and then looked over Keith, wondering if his ears were deceiving him. Judging by Keith’s expression, who seemed to be having a stroke, Lance concluded he had listened well.

 _“Okay, that was weird”_ thought the villain, eyeing Shiro suspiciously.

The hero got up without releasing Lance’s hand. Even when he started pulling at it surreptitiously, the grip stayed firm.

“Are you sure you’re fine?” asked Keith, looking at Lance like it was his fault. Well, apart from the obvious.

“Don’t worry, _Red_. I’m feeling great” replied Shiro, before turning to Lance with a wide smile. If Lance didn’t know Shiro, he would have said that it looked… _flirty_. But that couldn’t be it… right? “Although… I want to ask you something.”

 _“Emm_ … sure.”

“Are you from _Mars_?” purred the hero, using his grip on Lance’s hand to pull him closer and whisper in his ear. “Because that body is out of this world.”

Lance shivered when he felt Shiro’s warm breath against his skin. He was so surprised that he didn’t react as the hero circled his waist with his other arm, and he found himself under his intense gaze and his definitely-not-innocent smile.  

“Your eyes are like black holes, nothing can escape their pull” continued the young man, taking the silence as a ‘go on, melt Lance into a puddle’.

“M-my eyes are blue,” babbled Lance, like an idiot, and feeling his cheeks light aflame. He was very lucky his mask covered half of his face or his blush would be very obvious.

“Yes, they are… A very beautiful blue color” muttered, slowly approaching Lance so he could…

“Okay, that’s it!” screamed Hunk, startling Lance, who had completely forgotten that they weren’t alone, “I don’t know what kind of sick game you’re playing, but stop harassing my friend! Back off, pervert!”

Lance was ripped from Shiro’s arms and wrapped in Hunk’s protective hug. The absolutely devastated look of Shiro’s face made the blue villain want to throw himself over to the hero and smother him with affection until he stopped looking like a kicked puppy. It was absolutely heartbreaking.

 _“Black_ is not a pervert!” protested Keith.

“Of course he’s a pervert,” Hunk talked back, “He dropped those awful pick-up lines on _Blue_ and tried to kiss him!”

“He hit his head pretty bad,” tried to pacify Allura. “ _Black’s_ just… confused.”

“I see him awake enough to flirt with _Blue._ ” scoffed Pidge.

“Yes, I hit my head” declared Shiro. “I also bit my lip. Would you kiss it better, _Blue Eyes_?”

And then he winked. Winked!

Lance was sure he was gonna have a heart attack.

“L-let’s calm down,” spluttered Lance. “There has to be a rational explanation for all this... _Glinch_?”

“It’s just a theory, but maybe the replacement of the theoretical design’s materials for the _Death Ray_ by others more… cheap and accessible, has caused... unexpected effects. Of the loving type,” muttered Pidge, pointing Shiro’s dreamy face. “As you can all see.”

“You mean… like a _Love Ray_?” asked Lance, confused.

“Don’t call it that, it’s gross.”

“Are you serious? A _Love Ray_? And you didn’t even know the effects of your shitty invention?” deadpanned Keith. “You must be the dumbest villains on this city. How are you even alive?”

“The only dumb thing here is your hairstyle, _Mullet-man!_ ” screamed Lance. “We are cool villains and this is a cool invention! M-maybe that was our plan all along, to… curse _Black_ to fall in love with me so he doesn’t arrest us.”

“It’s a cool plan.” agreed Shiro.

“Thank you.”

“Your plan, my ass! One minute ago you didn’t even know how your own machine worked!”

“ENOUGH!” cut Allura. “I don’t care how we reached this point, what I want is for you to fix…” the girl grabbed Shiro, who had tried to creep closer to Lance while everyone else was distracted, “ _THIS_.”

The three villains looked at each other, hoping to see the situation’s solution in their friends’ faces. None of them had any idea of what to do, aside from finding a route of escape.

“Don’t even think about it,” hissed Allura, menacingly, as her body started to grow until it reached three meters high. “You’re not going anywhere.”

Lance sneaked a look to Keith, who had wrapped his hands in fire, and gulped. How did they expect them to solve a problem they didn’t know how they’d caused?

“Listen, guys…”

Suddenly, an intense light illuminated the whole rooftop, blinding them for a few seconds.

The press helicopter descended over them, raising a strong wind that would have thrown Pidge to the floor if Hunk hadn’t grabbed her. The blades’ noise was so loud that they could hardly hear each other, but Lance caught the sound of the police sirens approaching.

Which meant the _Galaxy Garrison Police_ and more heroes would appear soon.

“WE HAVE TO GO!” shouted Lance, trying to be heard over the chaos. “YELLOW, GET THE _LOVE RAY_!”

“Don’t you dare!” screamed Keith, running towards them.

The villain used the water of his canteen to form a whip and launch a swift attack on the hero.

Keith avoided the weapon with a jump, but a new movement of the helicopter threw a new bust of wind that misbalanced him. The red hero fell to the floor, cursing the pilot, the press, and the villain.

_“Breaking news! We are currently upon an abandoned building besides the West Bank of Altea, where there’s a fierce battle…”_

“Go! Go! Go!” yelled Lance, helping Pidge grab her equipment while Hunk threw the _Love Ray_ over his shoulder without much effort.

“STOP, YOU THREE!”

Allura unsheathe her staff and ran after them to cut their escape route. However, she had not taken more than a couple of steps when Shiro tackled her screaming, _“Don’t hurt him!”_

 _“Ugh, that looks painful”_ thought Lance, with a grimace, while he climbed the fire escape.

“Dammit, _Black_!” cried out Allura, squirming to get free of Shiro’s grip. “Stop it!”

“It’s been a pleasure, everyone! We should do this some other time!” announced Lance, giving the finger gun to the helicopter and hoping the camera caught his good side. “Goodnight, _Altean City_!”

As Lance went down the ladder, Pidge used her power to hack into the section’s illumination system, leaving all the streets in a one kilometer radius in the darkness.

After that, it wasn’t too difficult to disappear into the shadows of the city.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -About _Altean City_ : I was inspired by Sternbild City (from Tiger&Bunny) to create the level system of Altean City, so the idea wasn't mine. Check an image of Sternbild City! It's gorgeous!  
> If you haven't seen the anime Tiger&Bunny, I strongly recommend it, because it's one of my favourites.  
> - _Volgon_ : anybody caugh the "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" reference?
> 
> I have another written chapter I still have to translate but I'll try to update next week, but I don't promise anything! I hope you liked this chapter!


	2. It's Not a Kidnapping If They Follow You With a Smile

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, earthlings! :D  
> I know I promised to finish it last week, but the translation took me more than I thought. I'm really sorry! I was never good at following schedules.
> 
> Thank you for all your awesome comments and kudos! I didn't know my story will be liked so much! Your support is the inspiration I need to write this story!
> 
> A big thank you to my new awesome beta [exo_moon](https://archiveofourown.org/users/exo_moon/pseuds/exo_moon) for cheking all the mistakes in this chapter! 
> 
> Anyway, I hope you like this chapter!

**Chapter 2 – It’s not a Kidnapping if They Follow you with a Smile**

 

 _“I've been reading books of old,_  
_the legends and the myths._  
_Achilles and his gold._  
_Hercules and his gifts._  
_Spiderman's control_  
_and Batman with his fists._  
_And clearly I don't see myself upon that list”_

_( **Coldplay & The Chainsmokers** – Something Just Like This)_

 

“Are you aware that Allura isn’t going to stop looking for us?”

“We are _quiznacked_ , right?” groaned Lance, looking at Pidge.

The three villains sighed and sank into the sofas of the _Evil Lair_.

It had been five days since Shiro was hit by the _Love R_ ay and they hadn’t been able to leave the base in their non-civillian identities. And even using their civilian identities, there was a risk of being discovered. It didn’t matter when and where, Allura and Keith always managed to find them in half an hour or so. They didn’t know how the heroes did it (cameras, witnesses, other heroes…), but it was obvious they had become a priority for _Voltron_.

Pidge almost got caught in the _Lower Level_ ’s docks when she went to repair their cameras, which had stopped transmitting to the lair during the night. The girl managed to lose them hiding inside a dumpster for two hours, nearly getting crushed by the garbage truck.

After that, they had only used their civilian identities if they had to leave the _Evil Lair_.

It was frustrating, but Lance understood _Team Voltron_ ’s desperation to find them. They (and the whole city) had watched on TV how _lovesick_ -Shiro was almost killed by a lowlife bunglar. Luckily, the criminal was so confused by the hero’s attitude that paused enough for Allura to come to his rescue.

After that pathetic display, Pidge and Hunk started looking for a way to reverse Shiro’s condition before he got killed or they got caught. Also, with Allura and Keith combing the area trying to arrest their asses, it was impossible to do their villainous jobs.

“Are you sure it’s a good idea, Lance?” asked Hunk, as Lance tried to put his jacket with _Kova_ perched on his shoulder.

The quiznacking cat seemed to hate every human in the _Evil Lair_ , but she had never tried to leave. Pidge theorized that maybe that was her way to show affection.

“I’ll be fine.” Lance tried to reassure him. “I’ll just go to the supermarket, buy some snacks and come right back to the _Evil Lair_. No detours. Just that.”

“There’s no ‘just that’ with you,” grumbled Pidge, turning her eyes away from the data she was analyzing for a few seconds. “Allura and Keith are pretty pissed off. If they catch you, they will beat you to a pulp.”

“Reassuring” mumbled Lance. “Don’t worry. I’ll go with my civilian clothes and I won’t leave the _Lower Level_ ,” insisted the Cuban boy, and when he saw doubt in Hunk’s face, he added, “Please, Hunk, I need to get out of here or I’ll go crazy! I have already counted every single stile of the bathroom! Don’t make me count the kitchen’s too!”

“All right, all right,” yielded his friend. “But promise me that you’ll call us if something happens.”

“Pinky promise. Don’t worry, guys! It’s just a trip to the supermarket! What could go wrong?”

Famous last words.

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

The _Lower Level_ was also known as “ _The Sewers_ ”.

Not because it was dirty, stinky or full of rats, but because most people in the upper levels were elitist pigs that looked down everyone who didn’t poop on golden toilets.

The problem of living in the _Lower Level_ was that it was at water level, both the ocean and the river. Every spring after the thawing, several sector flooded, especially if the sewage clogged, which happened every five or six months. Everyone knew that the Council destined most of the money to the maintenance of the upper levels and the little money that reached the _Lower Level_ was mostly for the Pillars.

Maybe the mayority people of _The Sewers_ couldn’t afford any of the luxuries of the upper levels or that a lot of them were criminals or villains, but they had more heart than any Upper person. In the neighborhoods people took care of each other and there was always somebody ready to offer you a job (maybe not legal, but a job nonetheless). Lance knows the only reason they first survived when they flew from the GGHS and until they gathered the money to buy the old lab, was because of the Lower people.

The Cuban Boy suspected some neighbors knew about his secret identity, but he also knew he had nothing to fear. Nobody would rat them to the _Galaxy Garrison Police_.

As long as they didn’t draw their attention, Lance and his friends were safe.

Lance left the _Evil Lair_ for the first time in days dressed with his green hoodie and jeans, enjoying the soft light of dusk. Then he initiated his first social interaction with somebody who wasn’t Pidge, Hunk or their pets: Mrs. Lloyd, an old woman who lived across the street. She was hanging missing posters on the streets. She told him that her son hadn’t come home or contacted her in six days. Lance wasn’t really concerned because the guy was already thirty and had a tendency to disappear for days. Also he was a _Gifted,_ which meant he wasn’t an easy victim.

However, his mother was worried and Lance promised he’d call her if he found out something.

 _“He’s an asshole, making his mother worry over nothing,”_ though Lance, lost in nostalgic memories of his own family on Cuba, which he hadn’t visited in almost seven years.

The happiness he felt when he left the base vanished and Lance had to blink back the tears, wondering what his mother would be doing.

Lance bought all the items as fast as he could and run through the streets to arrive the _Evil Lair_ as soon as he could. A _Skype_ session was in order. He suddenly needed to see all his family’s faces squished on the screen of the computer, even with all the uncomfortable questions about his “job as a Superhero”: if he was going to join _Voltron_ , if he had met _Black Lightning_ , how many villains he had put in jail… It was getting harder to dodge all his family’s inquiries without getting caught in the lies.

That was his plan, but then it all went to hell.

The villain had just decided to take a shortcut through a dark twisted alley, when he heard several voices arguing.

“Give us all your money! I won’t repeat myself!” demanded a rough pissed voice. “Do you think this is a game?”

“I do not carry money,” answered another voice, a very happy familiar voice.

“ _Quiznak_ ,” cursed Lance, stopping to a halt and praying for his mind to be tricking him. “Please, don’t be him. Please, don’t be him…”

“Are you kidding me?” growled a third voice. “How stupid do you think we are?”

“I didn’t come to buy anything. I’m just looking for my True Love,” announced Shiro, dreamily.

 _“I just wanted to go to the supermarket and come back to Skype my family”_ lamented Lance, silently. He left his purchases on the floor and covered his face with the hood. _“Why my life has to be so complicated?”_

Lance slipped silently into the alley, using the dumpsters and the shadows to come closer without being seen.

Three huge men and a short one that looked like a rat had cornered Shiro, who didn’t seem worried at all about the situation he was in. The hero wore a soft-looking grey sweater and skinny jeans that probably cost more than Lance’s life.

 _“Oh, quiznack, they are gonna kill him,”_ thought Lance, watching Shiro smile widely.

“Which madhouse has this weirdo escaped?” grunted _Thug One_ , glaring suspiciously at Shiro.

“Who cares?” snarled _Rat Face_ , looking for something in his pocket. “He’s one of the rich kids from the Upper Level. My own flat is cheaper than that sweater. Maybe he’s not carrying money, but I bet that we’ll get a good sum for him.”

Lance saw the glint of a knife and jumped from behind the dumpster, calling his power. He used the water from a broken pipeline to create a whip and hit the criminal’s hand, throwing away the weapon.

“Back off,” ordered Lance, careful to stay in the shadows. “Now.”

“ _Blue_!” cried out Shiro, happily. “I’ve found you!”

“ _Blue_? As in… _Blue Wave_? The v-villain?” asked _Thug Two_ , with hesitation, to Lance’s satisfaction. “Dave, I didn’t agree to fight a _Gifted._ ”

“Who cares about his name?” screamed _Rat Face_. “Stay away from our business, _freak_.”

“Let that man go and I will,” talked back the Cuban boy, not giving in to the rage of being called _freak_. “I won’t repeat myself.”

“Dave, maybe it’s not so bad he’s here,” intervened _Thug One_ , with an interested glint in his eye. “Maybe… _He’s_ interested in a _Gifted_ like him.”

“Yeah, good idea. Grab him!”

 _“He?”_ wondered Lance, before two of the four criminals pounced.

The villain advanced his left leg and moved his arms in a wide circle, extending his palms to his opponents. Answering his body’s movements, a waterjet arose from the sewer under his feet and launched against _Thug Two_ and _Thug Three_ , throwing them to the floor.

Lance closed his fists and willed the water to turn into ice, trapping the criminals against the asphalt.

“You, _motherquizna_ -!”

The Cuban boy jumped back, dodging _Rat Face’s_ knife, and moving his hands to lead the water against him. It hit the criminal’s chest like a punch, sending him to the brick wall.

He fell unconscious and didn’t move again.

“Shiro, you...”

Something wet circled his neck and cut his air supply, making him loose control of the water.

Lance fell on his knees, gasping like a fish out of the water and scratching whatever it was strangling him. He just had time to see a purple flash before _Thug One_ collapsed and his throat was released.

He took a deep breath and turned around, ready to use his gift. Then he realized that his attacker had used his tongue… HIS TONGUE to strangle him, like some kind of weird chameleon.

“ _Arg_! Gross!” screamed Lance, using the sleeves of his hoodie to clean frenetically any spit left on his neck. “His tongue! His _quiznacking_ tongue!”

“ _Blue_!” called Shiro, jumping over the unconscious man. “Are you hurt?”

“Leaving aside I’m incredibly grossed out, I’m fine,” answered Lance, with a grimace. “Well, I’m fine thanks to you. You saved me.”

“Yes, after you saved me,” said the man, smiling dreamily and reminding Lance he was still under the _Love Ray_ ’s influence. “You’re my hero.”

“No, I’m not! I-I’m not anyone’s hero! I-AM-A-VILLAIN!”

“Well, you’re my hero,” insisted the Japanese man, with shiny eyes. “What you did there was pretty heroic.”

Although Lance had abandoned his dream of becoming a hero years ago and he had resigned to see his love for Shiro unrequited, his heart started beating faster after hearing those words. Even if Shiro wasn’t on his right mind.

“And you’re pretty,” purred Shiro, suddenly very close. “Very, very pretty.”

“How can you _te_ -?”

And then the villain remembered he wasn’t wearing his suit, just his jacket. To make things worse, the hood had fallen down during the fight so his uncovered face was on display for Shiro’s hungry gaze.

“Oh, _quiznack_.”

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

“So you kidnapped him.”

“I didn’t kidnap him!” protested Lance, before Pidge and Hunk’s accusatory glares. “He followed me willingly!”

“ _Blue_ , can I take off the blindfold?”

Shiro, sitting on the blue ratty couch with his neat expensive clothes, clashed with the chaos of their living room.

Even if they never had guests, the villains had chosen the biggest room of the base to establish the living room. Then they had bought or picked from the streets all the furniture: couch, tables, chairs, shelves… and a temperamental TV that Hunk didn’t managed to fix completely and worked whenever it wanted. The result of their enthusiastic decorative skills was an extravagant, chaotic but undoubtedly cozy room.

Although Shiro was in his enemies’ base with his eyes blindfolded with his own scarf, he seemed rather happy to stay on the couch, petting _Kova_. Neither of the villains knew how he had gained her unconditional love over the people that fed her, because _Kova_ hated everyone.

The cat had claimed Shiro’s lap the moment he sat and she purred as the hero scratched her belly. Lance had never felt so much envy for an animal in all his twenty three years of existence.

Life is full of surprises.

“Just wait a little more. Please? For me?”

“Okay!”

Shiro looked like the picture of innocence. Looking at his face, nobody could figure out all the filthy things that had left the hero’s mouth during the short way to the _Evil Lair_.

“It wasn’t my fault!” yelled Lance, turning around and facing again his friends’ expressions of disapproval. “Stop looking at me like that! I’m the victim here!”

“ _Lan_ -… _Blue,_ ” Pidge corrected herself while adjusting her mask nervously, even though the hero couldn’t see anything. “We have two very pissed off heroes looking for us day and night. What do you think it’s gonna happen when they find out you have kidnapped _Black_? Or when they discover you have included their leader in your kinky… sexual games?”

“It’s not a kinky sexual game!”

“It could be… if you wanted,” suggested the hero, opening his legs with a lascivious smirk. “I’m at your mercy, _Blue_. What are you going to do to me?”

Lance’s eyes followed the movement of Shiro’s tongue to wet his lips. Then his heated gaze was drawn by the hero’s vulnerable skin of his neck, the contour of the muscles under the sweater and his thighs flexing under the tight jeans, which allowed to appreciate the shape of his…

“Wow, this guy can go from zero to sixty in one second,” mumbled Hunk, scratching his face, uncomfortable, and almost hitting his yellow mask.

“Forget what I said. If someone’s virtue is in danger, it’s yours, _Blue,_ ” concluded Pidge, with a grimace. “What are we gonna do with him? Don’t you dare to answer that, _Black_!”

Shiro closed his mouth and shrugged, but continued to smile cheekily.

“We have to take him back to the _Upper Level_ ,” decided Lance, feeling a tiny pang of sadness for the lost chance to spend more time with his hero. However, the feeling of discomfort inside his pants reminded him just how bad it was the idea of letting him stay. “As soon as possible.”

“It’s already night. The _Watchers_ aren’t gonna let us go to the upper levels,” Hunk reminded them. “How about we leave him were you found him and then we call _Voltron_?”

“Your idea is leaving him in a dark alley in the middle of the night?” scoffed Pidge.

“And if we watch him from a distance?”

“We don’t even know how to contact them,” pointed out Lance. “It’s always the other way around. They come to us when we are causing chaos.”

“That’s not a problem,” intervened Pidge. “Just give me an hour and…”

“I have their phone numbers.”

The three villains turned around to face Shiro, which also had _Harper_ and _Blue_ snuggled up in his chest.

Lance squinted, suspiciously.

“You do?”

“Yes,” answered the hero, with an innocent expression as fake as the GG work ethics. “They are saved on my mobile phone.”

“And where’s your phone?”

“In my pocket.” replied Shiro, moving a little to show the bulge… in his jean’s back pocket. “Come here and get it.”

“NO!” yelped Lance, with a strangled voice. “Y-you have two hands! Use them and give u-us the phone!”

Shiro pouted but grasped the device and offered it to the villains.

Lance didn’t want to find this as endearing as he did, but he couldn’t help it. He grabbed the phone and reeled back as if Shiro would try to bite him.

The villain wouldn’t put it past him, better be cautious.

“This model is older that all of us together,” commented Pidge, looking critically the phone as Lance tried to find a way to turn it on. “I’m surprised it even has a camera.”

“It works fine, why would I want to change it?” mumbled the hero, a little defensive. “Besides, my friend Matt” Lance watched the little wince of Pidge, upon hearing his brother’s name “still found a way to install a _GPS_ , as if I was a child or a criminal.”

That made the three villains freeze.

“You said… a _GPS_?” asked Hunk, cautiously, like wishing his ears had heard wrong.

“They think I don’t know,” jeered Shiro, smug. “I just had to turn it off so they couldn’t locate me.”

Lance looked at the phone that rested innocently in his hands as it was a ticking bomb, and then at his friends, which were also panicking. Hunk looked like he was gonna vomit and Pidge looked two seconds away of suggesting to crush the phone with a mace.

“Can I take off the blindfold?”

“We all agree that turning on the phone to call _Voltron_ would be a bad idea, right?” said Lance, ignoring the hero’s question.

“Absolutely.”

“The worst.”

“So, once again… what do we do with him?”

The young Japanese had removed the blindfold and observed them with curious eyes, waiting for their decision. When Shiro noticed he had their attention, the hero smiled at them.

“Can I stay here? Please?”

“Fine,” Lance reluctantly agreed, knowing very well that they wouldn’t be able to do anything else that night. “Shiro will sleep on this couch.”

“I don’t mind sharing a bed with you.”

“No.”

“Pretty please?”

“You will sleep on this couch,” repeated the blue villain, firmly, trying to keep the inappropriate thoughts out of his mind. “ _Glinch_ , bring some blankets. _Yellow_ , can you see if there are some leftovers in…?”

“Can I kiss you goodnight?”

 _“This is gonna be a looong night,”_ thought Lance, rubbing his temples in an attempt to make his growing headache disappear.

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

The _Galaxy Garrison Police (GGP)_ , was founded by the General Viktor Iverson, grandfather of the actual Commander Iverson, after the _Great Fire_ that shacked _Altean City_ , a century ago. Normal prisons weren’t able to contain the _Gifted_ , so the _GGP_ was created to lock the ones who broke the law.

As the fire was created by a _Gifted_ Galra called Zarkon of _Daizabaal_ , the _GGP’s_ creation received absolute support from the people and the _Council_ of the city. In little time and thanks to the city’s financing, they had not only built the _GGP’s_ Station, but also _the Galaxy Garrison Center of Investigation_ , to find new ways to fight the Gifted, and the _Galaxy Garrison High School for Young Superheroes_ , to help them control their new powers.

Even though its foundation had been for a good cause, in the last few decades, they gained too much power… and too many _anti-Gifted_ radicals had joined their ranks. Every _Gifted_ knew that the only reason they weren’t all locked up was that President Alfor had been the one to defeat Zarkon and his purple flames.

The _Galaxy Garrison_ was no longer considered a symbol of protection, but something to be feared, something to be whispered in hidden alleys, something you think when your _Gifted_ friend doesn’t arrive home one night…

Or at least by the people of _The Sewers_.

Why the people of the upper levels would fear something they could control?

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

 _“Why the universe punishes me?”_ wondered Lance in silence, lying in his own bed and immobilized under a big muscled body that clung to him like an octopus.

Although Lance had proclaimed Shiro would sleep on the couch, he had finally found himself agreeing to the hero sleeping with him. He still wasn’t sure how the young Japanese man had managed to convince him. Maybe it was his sad look, his begging or Lance’s inability to think reasons to say “no”, but in no time, Shiro was climbing to the villain’s bed. The only thing Lance had achieved was a promise from the hero that there would not be bad-touching in that bed.

It didn’t feel like a victory.

It wasn’t like the Japanese man had bothered him or made unwanted advances, not even when Lance started his beauty routine. Shiro had just sat on the bed and looked around with curiosity, enjoying the ocean-themed decoration of the room and the glowing star stickers of the ceiling. However, his mere presence was enough to make Lance nervous, even when he didn’t do anything untoward.

 _“Why I am being punished this way?”_ cried the Cuban boy, internally, wishing he was a worse man so that he could enjoy the situation.

Even though they both started on different sides of the bed, Shiro had slowly approached while Lance pretended not to notice, even if his heart was beating so loud in his chest that it was a miracle the hero couldn’t hear it. Finally, Shiro had surrounded his waist with his human arm and asked, hesitantly “Is this okay?”

Lance didn’t have the heart to say “no”.

However, in those moments Lance was regretting his decision, because there was no way to distract himself from the body hugging him, the soft movement of his chest or his warm breath against his neck.

“Stupid Shiro,” mumbled Lance. “With his stupid body and his stupid smile and his stupid adorable hair and…”

“I’m sorry.”

Lance couldn’t hold back a yelp and he would have fell out of the bed if Shiro hadn’t tightened his grip. The villain turned around and found his face very close to the hero’s grey eyes, who looked at him, startled.

“Y-you… you were awake!” hissed Lance, feeling himself blush at being caught. “What were you doing? You can’t just… just… eavesdrop other people conversations!”

“You were talking to me. About me.”

“I was talking to your sleeping-self. Your awake-self was not allowed into the conversation!”

“I’m sorry,” apologized the Japanese man, with a soft sheepish smile, which caused a warm feeling in Lance’s chest.

The moonlight came thought the only window in the room and lighted Shiro’s face, giving him an ethereal look. However, despite the breathtaking vision, Lance’s gaze fixed on his tired, almost haunted, expression. It was like the thought of falling asleep terrified him.

“Can’t you sleep?” asked Lance, gently.

“It’s hard to fall asleep… or stay asleep,” whispered Shiro, embarrassed… or maybe just sad. “You know… memories.”

“Of your time in captivity?”

Shiro’s whole body tensed and backed away all he could in the narrow bed. Not knowing if it was the smartest movement but not caring about it, Lance grabbed the hero’s arm. Before the Japanese man thought about freeing himself, Lance placed a hand on the back of his neck and forced him to put his head on his chest… like he used to do with his nephews before moving to _Altean City_.

Listening to his heartbeat always calmed them down.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry…” babbled the Cuban boy. “I shouldn’t have say anything. Me and my stupid mouth…”

Shiro didn’t say anything, rigid as a table against his body.

The villain was at a loss of what to do, so he started to pet his hear softly. He listened to Shiro’s exhale and, for a moment, he feared he had overstepped, but then the hero relaxed his body.

“I don’t mind. I’m fine,” mumbled Shiro, his words muffled against Lance’s pajamas. “It’s been a long time.”

Lance’s fingers stopped momentary on the white locks.

It also had been a long time since he had heard those exactly words from Shiro’s mouth.

Six years.

Six long years since that night in the Galaxy Garrison’s observatory.

That night in which his seventeen year old self had gone to the highest spot in the high school to feel a little less alone.

That night in which he found a broken young man crying in a corner of the room, on the verge of a panic attack and repeating again and again the same three words: _“I am fine”._

That night in which he sat beside Takashi Shirogane, not the hero, but the survivor who was not allowed to show an image that wasn’t of perfection.

That night in which Lance rambled for hours, jumping from topic to topic, trying to make Shiro’s devastated look disappear. The hero didn’t move an inch or said another word, so Lance didn’t even know if he was listening.

But it didn’t matter, he just kept talking until he fell asleep against Shiro’s shoulder.

The next morning he woke up completely alone to the furious screams of the Astronomy teacher and ended getting detention.

 _“Maybe it was all my imagination… I’m pathetic like that,”_ lamented Lance, mentally. He also remembered how the Japanese man ignored him whenever they were in the same room. Maybe not ignored, just not acknowledged, because you have to be important enough for your existence to be recognized.

 _“Blue?”_ asked Shiro, feeling Lance’s arms tightening around his body. “Are _you_ okay?”

“What? Oh! Yes, I am fine! Great! Fabulous!” blurted the villain, trying to push any negative thoughts of his mind. “Never been better.”

The hero blinked, a little confused by Lance’s fake effusive. A very familiar look in the people who dealt on a daily basis with him. At least it was better than sadness.

“Shiro” muttered Lance, drawing the hero’s attention again. “You’re not fine, you don’t have to pretend otherwise. People are allowed to not be okay, and you’re no exception. There’s no time limit in which you have to recover.”

The hero made a sound that Lance couldn’t interpret as he clung to his body with more force.

“Sleep, Shiro,” whispered the villain, grabbing the blankets and covering both carefully.

“I like it when you call me Shiro,” mumbled the Japanese man, in a voice so soft that Lance almost missed it.

Lance almost had heart attack, but he forced his body to remain still. His name? When he had started to call him by his name instead of “ _Black_ ”? He really hoped Shiro would lose his memory when effects of the Love Ray disappeared or he would be in big trouble.

 _“Don’t be sad, it’s just another thing about you he won’t remember,”_ laughed the cruel part of his brain.

“S-sleep,” he repeated, trying to conceal his inner turmoil. “Tonight you’re safe.”

He wanted to say more things, but he stopped himself on time before he said something stupid like “I’m here for you”, because no, he couldn’t be there for him.

Shiro was the hero. Lance was a villain.

Shiro was the savior of the city. Lance was part of the problem.

And the most important thing, Shiro was there against his will, even if he didn’t realize. When the influence vanished, he would go away.

Lance didn’t need another heartbreak.

Although there was nothing bad in offering comfort that night.

Right?

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

Lance must have fallen asleep counting star stickers, because the next thing he remembered is waking up with the sunlight on his face and a hot body draped over him like a muscled blanket.

Maybe it was because his mind was trying to stay awake, but the freak out he was expecting never came.

The villain rubbed his eyes, yawning, and stared Shiro’s relaxed face. He looked so young and innocent, even though he was using Lance as a teddy bear and drooled over his pajama. Lance could feel the wetness thought the fabric and it was gross, but he didn’t want to move. It didn’t seem like Shiro had lots of nights with restful sleep and… he wanted to enjoy being in the hero’s arms a little more just a little more.

It was a win-win.

And when he was ready to listen to the egoistic part of his brain, Shiro moaned and moved his body, resting against his thigh something that was _NOT_ INNOCENT AT ALL.

“Heck, no!” the villain screamed internally.

Definitely, it was time to get up.

Lance managed miraculously to squirm out of Shiro’s arms without waking up the hero and without rubbing too much against his manly parts, which he didn’t want to think about when he was beside the source of his fantasies. All of that while internally panicking.

The villain, red as a tomato, took his gown and run away from his own room, trying to block what happened. At least until he had a moment of privacy. With a little bit of luck, he could eat his breakfast alone, to mentally prepare himself for what was coming.

However, there was already someone in the kitchen when he arrived.  

“Hunk? What are you doing here so early?”

Hunk screamed and let go the tray of freshly made cookies, which scattered on the floor.

“O-oh, hey, Lance!” exclaimed the Samoan boy, smiling nervously. “A-and you? Since you got fir-… I mean… Lately you don’t get up so early.”

Lance grimaced. He didn’t like to be reminded that he was fired almost two weeks ago, after a huge fight with his slave-driver boss. Sadly, working as a villain didn’t pay enough, so they all needed a second job: Lance as a waiter, Hunk as a cooker in a school canteen and Pidge at an electronics store.

“Yeah, well, I don’t usually have a Superhero dry humping me.”

“Ugh, gross.”

Lance kneeled to help his friend pick up all the cookies. It was a little difficult to do that while staring unashamedly at Hunk, but he couldn’t look away from his pallor and the dark circles under his eyes. Or the big collection of baked goods over the counter. You didn’t need to be a genius to know Hunk had been awake for hours.

The yellow villain was trying to distract Lance talking about his new recipe, but the Cuban boy could see through the act.

“Hunk, are you okay?” asked Lance, feeling that he had asked the same question too many times in little time.

“Yeah, of course. Why wouldn’t I be?”

“Hunk,” interrupted the blue villain, softly. “You know you can talk to me, right?”

His friend left the new tray of cookies aside a two cherry pies but didn’t turn around to face Lance.

“The truth is…” started Hunk, leaning heavily on the counter. “The truth is I’m having n-nightmares again.”

“Since when?”

“Just a few days, since the night of the robbery. It’s just… hearing the _GGP’s_ sirens again…”

“Good morning.”

Both villains flinched and Hunk opened the fridge’s door to hide behind, while he put on the yellow mask.

Shiro walked into the kitchen, rubbing his eyes and more asleep than awake. The hero was a big man but Hunk’s pajamas were even bigger, slipping down his shoulder and showing the pale scarred skin of his clavicle. Besides, there was something vulnerable in the way his barefoot walked over the cold tiles that had Lance hypnotized. And he would have stared him forever if Pidge hadn’t entered the room after the Japanese man and gazed at him, judgmentally.

“G-good morning, Shiro,” babbled Lance, embarrassed and grabbing the first plate he could reach, which was full of pancakes. “Wanna have breakfast?”

“Yes, please.”

Shiro sat on the chair, making grabby hands and looking at the pancakes like it was the best thing that happened on his life. When Lance put the food on the table, the hero caressed the back of his hand with the tips of his fingers, almost making him drop the juice’s jar.

“Shiro…” warned Lance, with slightly tinted cheeks.

“I’m sorry,” apologized the Japanese man, not looking sorry at all.

And then he proceeded to stuff his face with pancakes.

Lance was really confused. Sometimes it seemed like Shiro was normal again and then he would do something weird that showed he was still high as _quiznak_ on _Love Rays_ or whatever.

“This is delicious,” declared Shiro, with his nose dirty with syrup.

“Oh! You like them?” Hunk perked up, watching the happiness on the hero’s face. “I’ve cooked a big bunch. Eat all you want.”

Although it was very funny to watch his friend explain joyfully all the different things he had baked, Lance observed Pidge, who in turn was watching Shiro as she drank her coffee. Her expression was of doubt and Lance knew exactly what was she thinking.

“You can ask him about Matt, you know?” whispered Lance. “He’ll probably won’t remember the conversation when the Ray effects disappear, you said it yourself.”

“Why would I want that?” growled Pidge, adjusting her mask. “You know we don’t talk to each other.”

“Yeah, but you want to know how your brother is doing. And… Shiro’s his best friend.”

“Maybe… maybe later” mumbled the girl, before frowning. “Is there something wrong?”

“Hunk. He’s having nightmares again.”

“Shit.”

“Yeah, shit.”

Pidge hesitated for a few seconds before asking.

“Should… should I install the baby monitors again? I know he’s embarrassed, but I don’t want him to spend his nights alone.”

“We’ll ask him,” Lance tried to reassured the girl, but remembering how adamant had been Hunk in the past. “But we’ll avoid calling them baby monitors.”

“Yeah, good call.”

Lance stole Pidge’s cup of coffee and took a sip, grimacing when he remembered Pidge drank her coffee black as Commander Iverson’s soul. The villain dodged a kick to his shin and stared unabashedly at Shiro. He had never seen the _Golden Boy_ of the Garrison so relaxed before and the Cuban boy thought it was sad he had to be a semi-prisoner of his enemies to be like that.

“This is also delicious,” was commenting Shiro. “You’re even a better than my cook. Would you be interested in a job offer?”

“You have a cook?” scoffed Pidge, probably thinking “stupid rich people”. And forgetting that Hunk was their own cook.

“Yes, Allura hired her. Apparently, I can’t cook to save my life.” answered the hero, licking his fingers and drawing Lance’s attention to his lips. “Also, they want to avoid me burning down the flat… again.”

Lance perked at the mention of Shiro’s apartment, an idea suddenly forming in his mind. Such an easy idea. Why didn’t we think about it before?

“Hey, guys. What about we just take him to his flat instead of calling _Voltron_?” suggested the villain. “What _Voltron_ doesn’t know, can’t hurt us.”

“I don’t wanna go, I want to stay with _Blue_!”

“Oh, _Blue_ , you’re a genius.”

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

The first thing Lance thought when he entered Shiro’s flat was “empty”.

It was an incredible apartment, in the twentieth floor of one of the most exclusive neighborhoods of the _Upper Level_. An enormous living room with huge windows that showed beutiful views of the city and the Atlantic Ocean, a modern kitchen which made Hunk drool, a bathroom with a tub so big that looked more like a pool and a bedroom with a bed full of pillows where all the _Voltron Team_ would be able sleep comfortably.

Everything was decorated in white, black and grey colors. The furniture seemed so expensive than Lance was sure that not even putting together their three salaries, they would be able to afford one chair. However, it all was so… impersonal. It was clear that Shiro hadn’t decorated the flat, because that place had been designed for elegance and not to be a home. Maybe the _Evil Lair_ was a mess, but at the same time it contained part of the persons who live there.

Just thinking about Shiro living there all alone, made Lance sad.

“Well, here it is,” announced Shiro, uncomfortable by the three villain’s prolonged silence. “My flat.”

“Is that a _Mercury Game Flux 5_?” asked Pidge, looking at a box peeking beside the big ass TV.

“Yes, I guess. Matt bought it for my birthday to ‘educate me’, but I don’t really use it,” answered the hero. When he saw the girl’s excited face, he added “Would you like to play?”

“This is the best day of my life.”

Although the villains insisted that it’d just be a quick “in and out” type of visit, they soon found themselves snooping around.

Pidge sat down on the floor and installed the _Game Flux_ while Hunk stored in the fridge all the food he had brought for Shiro. Lance had migrated towards one of the windows to observe the ocean, the same ocean he contemplated when he was just a child who dreamed to be a hero in _Altean City_.

 _“It’ll soon be Veronica’s birthday,”_ thought Lance, blinking to contain the tears. _“Will they celebrate it on the beach or in the garden of Mama’s house? Marco always complained about sand in unwanted places…”_

“ _Quiznak_!” cursed Lance, feeling the cat’s sharp teeth biting his ankle. “Dammit, _Kova_! Don’t bite people!”

She just kept looking at him with hate.

 _Kova_ had fallen completely in love with Shiro and refused to let him leave, clinging to his jeans with her sharp claws. Fearing she would accidentally poison the hero with her nails, the villains decided to bring the cat with them. As the hero was the only one she allowed to touch her, he carried her in his arms, but the moment they entered the apartment, _Kova_ jumped to the floor and run to explore the rooms.

And apparently came back to torment the blue villain.

“I saved you and fed you, traitor,” hissed Lance, looking at the animal. “ _Cría cuervos y te sacarán los ojos*_ ”

 _Kova_ turned away and flicked her tail, losing interest in the human. Before Lance could say anything, two arms wrapped themselves around the villain’s chest and pulled him against a muscled chest.

“Shiro!” yelled the Cuban boy, tense like a violin string. “W-what are you doing?”

“Hugging you,” mumbled Shiro, burying his face in Lance’s neck. “You smell good.”

“It’s vanilla and coconut. And you, mister, promised no funny business.”

“Oh, I’m sorry.”

One day Lance will be able to resist Shiro’s sad and dejected face, but that wasn’t the day.

“Look, Shiro, all of our other… meetings had consisted in your heroic alter ego chasing my villainous alter ego to put his ass on jail,” tried to reason Lance, squirming out of the hero’s arms. “We don’t actually don’t know each other too much, so… how about we take it slow? We could start just… holding hands, what do you think?”

“Okay!” nodded Shiro, smiling happily and taking the villain’s hand. “Can I kiss you?”

“No. Just holding hands for the moment.”

Lance looked at his friends, who were trying to decide which game they would play first, and used their distraction to ask Shiro:

“Don’t you find all this a little weird? All this sudden interest for me? You just wake up after being hit by a _Death Ray_ and _BAM_ , you are attracted to me.”

“What do you mean? I’ve always been interested in you.”

“Yeah, in a ‘catch the criminal’ way.”

“No.”

 “Shiro, you’re just confused,” insisted Lance, trying not to sound like a father explaining things to his six-year-old child. “You’re not interested in me, it’s just the effect of…”

“I’m not confused,” protested the hero, and then added with a shy smile. “I like it when you flirt with me.”

“You don’t know me at all! You don’t even know my real name!”

“I’ll know it once you tell me.”

Lance bit his tongue to not fall into the obvious trap, while Pidge and Hunk tried to contain his giggles with much exaggerated coughs.

“How about no,” scoffed Lance, desisting in trying to convince the influenced Shiro of the falsity of his feelings. “Better luck next time.”

Shiro laughed, so openly and freely, that Lance stayed hypnotized for a few seconds by the sound, the smile and the brightness of his grey eyes. He had never seen the hero laugh like that, he didn’t even know he was able to, but the Cuban boy thought happiness really suited him.

Then their eyes crossed and Lance felt himself blush for having been caught staring so unabashedly.

“Is the _G-game Flux_ installed yet?” exclaimed Lance, trying to hide his embarrassment, and without waiting for an answer, he jumped on the couch. “Cool! Let’s play for a while! Have you ever played _Killbot Phantasm XI_ with a group of people, Shiro?” The hero shook his head. “Great! We’re gonna give you a crash course of relaxing and having fun.”

Hunk looked sideways at Lance as he removed the protective plastic layer of the game. Pidge put the controller in Shiro’s hands and ushered him to it down beside Lance. The hero was looking at them like they all had gone completely nuts. Maybe they had.

“Okay, Shiro,” started Lance, grabbing the Japanese man’s hands and placed his fingers over the buttons. “The first thing you have to know…”

“Is that the door?”

Everybody froze.

As if the ones entering the flat wanted to confirm their presence, the sound of the door closing echoed down the corridors.

Lance put on his hood and the blue mask when he heard two pairs of feet rapidly approaching by the long corridor. The living room’s door suddenly opened, hitting the wall, and two very livid Allura and Keith came in.

Maybe in a different time and place, Lance would have found the situation very funny, because it was impossible to say who was more surprised: if the villains or the heroes.

“Hello!” chirped Shiro. “Do you want some popcorn?”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * _"Cría cuervos y te sacarán los ojos"_ : Raise crows, and they'll gouge out your eyes --> it's an Spanish saying, I don't know if it's known in other countries. Basically, it talks about people's ingratitude. 
> 
> A detail about Lance's movements during the battle: I imagine his water control like the waterbending in Avatar (I love the show). Sorry, I just couldn't resist. 
> 
> Conclusions of the chapter:  
> -Is that angst? Yes it is!  
> -Is that the plot starting? Yes, of course!  
> -Is that me making Hunk suffer? Yes, I'm a monster and I hate myself. You'll read what happened to him in the next chapters.  
> -Is that me making Matt and Pidge not talking to each other? Yes, it is. You'll know why in the next chapters.  
> My brain works on different and angst-ish directions. 
> 
> Well, my dear earthlings, I don't know when I'll have the next chapter ready, but I hope than in one or two weeks. 
> 
> If you want to ask question, give me your own headcanons or theories about this story or just scream about Shance and Voltron, come to my tumblr!!


	3. If Something Shady is Going On… Who Are You Gonna Blame?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, Earthlings! Guess who's back... back again? 
> 
> I'm really sorry it took me so long, but real life is a pain in the ass! Thank you for your pacience and your lovely comments! When I need inspiration, I come back to them and re-read them all!
> 
> Thank you to my beta [exo_moon](https://archiveofourown.org/users/exo_moon/pseuds/exo_moon) for checking this chapter! 
> 
> Nothing heavy, but warnings at the end notes.

**_Chapter 3 – If Something Shady is Going On… Who Are You Gonna Blame?_ **

_“If I go crazy then will you still_  
_call me Superman?_  
_If I'm alive and well, will you be_  
_there holding my hand?_  
_I'll keep you by my side with_  
_my superhuman might._  
_Kryptonite.”_

_( **3 Doors Down** – Kryptonite)_

“Hello!” chirped Shiro, happily, “Do you want some popcorn?”

Shiro’s words seemed to awake everyone from their incredulous silence.

“Popcorn? POPCORN?” shouted Keith, who seemed seconds away of breathing fire, literally or metaphorically. “Are you _quiznacking_ me?”

“ _Yellow_ made some,” answered the hero, a little confused.

Keith clenched his teeth and took a breath, trying to contain the desire to go berserker on them. The three villains leaned back unconsciously.

However, before a massacre took place in the living room, Allura stood in between Keith and the people sitting on the couch. Maybe it was just his imagination, but Lance thought she was a little breathless.

“What _Red_ is trying to say is… Where have you been, _Black_?” the woman asked with a cold, calm voice that was even worse than Keith’s angry one. “We were so worried! Red and I have been looking for you all night and you are suddenly here with these… troublemakers.”

“Wow, rude,” muttered Lance, regretting his comment when Allura’s eyes fixed on him. “Just ignore me, I’m not here.”

“I was in the _Lower Level_ looking for _Blue_ ,” explained Shiro, trying to grab Lance’s hand, “and I found him!”

Knowing it was better not to provoke the heroes, the Cuban boy dodged Shiro’s attempt and sat on his hands. The man pouted, but he didn’t try to get a hold on him again.

“So… you kidnapped him,” concluded Allura, crossing her arms.

“Why is everybody saying that?” groaned the blue villain.

“We didn’t kidnap him!” protested Hunk, defending his friend. “He followed _Blue_ willingly!”

“I saved him from smugglers and true kidnappers! And I brought him home! You should be thanking us!”

“If you had watched him better, none of this would have happened.” intervened Pidge. “We did the right thing! We actually deserve a reward!”

Allura looked at them in disbelief.

“Are you _quiz_ -…? This… whole mess is your… fault!” screamed Allura, losing her composure. “You built that… _Love Ray_! You… you shot him!”

“It was an accident!” Lance defended himself. “We wanted to build a _Death Ray_ and… Is that _blood_?”

Just after the word “blood” left his mouth, Keith and Shiro were alongside Allura helping her get to the couch and almost sitting her on Pidge, who managed to move away on time.

Since Keith and Allura entered the living room, Lance had been too busy worrying about if he was going to be beaten to a pulp to notice the heroes’ appearances. However, Lance could now see how the spotless white of Allura’s suit was covered in mud and ripped around her belly and her arms. Keith’s wasn’t much better, but the red color concealed better the state of his clothes. Sweat covered Allura’s forehead and her wet white locks framed her face, which showed a grimace of pain as she clung to her side.

Then Shiro pushed aside her cloak to better see the wound…

“Holly _quiznak_!” exclaimed Lance. “What the frick frack is _THAT_?”

There was a burn of the size of Pidge’s hand on Allura’s flank. The skin and the suit were completely charred, in some kind of deformed and fleshy mass. Little purple dots shimmered inside the wound.

“I saw a first aid kit on the bathroom!” screamed Hunk, getting up and running out of the room. Lance couldn’t blame him, his own stomach churned just watching the burn.

“What happened?” asked Shiro, entering in leader mode. After seeing his friend in danger, there was nothing left of the lovestruck Shiro from two minutes ago.

Keith looked at the villains with suspicion for a few seconds, before deciding they weren’t a threat.

“We went to _The Sewers_ looking for you,” started the red hero, “and when we were searching the docks, we found three hooded people arguing. Before any of us could do anything, one of those mysterious guys drew a sword and killed one of them.”

“It… it was then when we… intervened… but the man was… already dead…” muttered Allura, clenching his teeth due to the pain. “The hooded… people… ran away. We tried to… stop them and they… attacked us.”

“They weren’t just three people, there was another one hiding in the shadows.” grumbled Keith, accepting the first aid kit that Hunk offered. “End of the story.”

“End of the story? Of course it’s not the end of the story.” scoffed Pidge. “I mean… Who were those mysterious hooded assassins? What do they want? Will they come back? Or rather, when will they come back?”

“We don’t know.” hissed the red hero.

“Well, I suggest you do it soon or you will have many more troubles.” she talked back, looking at Allura. “You have noticed this is just the start, right princess?” and when the white hero remained silent, Pidge continued, “The _Lower Level_ docks are the perfect place for not-so-legal business. For the right sum of money, the authorities will be happy to look other way. It is also a meeting point for smuggling, especially those who come from outside _Altean City_. And then there is also _that_ wound, because _that_ has not been made by any torch or flamethrower. It seems of the ‘fire superpower’ kind, to be exact.”

“It was a sword.”

“Then it wasn’t a normal sword, _Red_ ,” quipped Pidge. “A mysterious sword with burning properties? Bad news.”

“So… the hooded people aren’t from _Altean City_ , have superpowers or advanced technology, and they are willing to kill,” concluded Hunk, gulping.

“Aaaand… of course, it’s all related to the shady things that are happening all over the city…” crooned Lance, batting his eyelashes. “And you dooon’t wanna tell us.”

“How did you find out?” exclaimed the red hero, alarmed. “The Garrison is keeping it a secret!”

“We actually didn’t know anything at all, but thank you for confirming there’s something shady going on,” smiled Lance, triumphant as Hunk high-fived him. “Suck it, _Mullet_ -man!”

Keith opened his mouth to deny it or insult them, but then he scowled and returned his attention on Allura. Shiro sighed exasperatedly, a sound that Lance hadn’t heard since the _Love Ray_ incident. He hadn’t realized how he’d missed that sound.

But Lance’s triumph didn’t last very long, just until he fixed his stare on the white hero again.

Allura was getting worse and worse, and her attempts to conceal her state weren’t enough to hide that fact. Her face was increasingly pale and covered in sweat. Although Lance hadn’t measured the burn’s length, he could have sworn it was spreading. Also it had not lost its supernatural glow, which was starting to freak the villain out.

 _“Why are we still here?”_ wondered Lance, wetting a rag in the bucket of water Hunk had brought from the kitchen and giving it to Shiro. _“We are the bad guys… and we have already saved the hero, like a villain shouldn’t do. Why haven’t we left yet?”_

“You should take her to the hospital,” insisted Hunk, reflecting everyone’s thoughts.

“I’m gonna call _Cor_ -… a doctor.”

“Don’t worry, _Red_ , you can call him Coran.” muttered Pidge, who tried to seem unaffected. “Everyone in the city knows Coran Hieronymus Wimbleton Smythe, one of the best doctors of _Altean City_. At the exclusive service of the heroes and other rich people of the _Upper Level_ , of course.”

Keith narrowed his eyes, but didn’t make any comment. However, he did grab the phone beside the living room’s door with a little more force than necessary.

Lance grimaced, sensing how tense everyone in the room was, and returned his attention to the girl writhing in pain, worried whether a fever would appear. The blue villain knew how easy it was for the burns to get infected, especially one so deep, even with the Altean’s regeneration skills, which seemed not to be working.

How strange.

Lance rolled up his sleeves and crouched down next to Allura, placing his hands over the wound.

“What are you doing?” asked Shiro, who had been muttering things to calm Allura while he cleaned the burn.

“Let me try something.”

The Japanese man looked at him for a few seconds, tense and ready to act should Lance try something weird, before nodding and taking Allura’s hand. Lance couldn’t blame him for the mistrust, but he would be lying if he said it didn’t sting.

The blue villain took a breath and started to slowly move his arms, as if they were waves in the ocean. Following his command, the water of the bucket rose in small tendrils and covered the wound, trying to capture the strange purple substance.

“Holly _quiznack_ ,” exhaled Hunk. “It’s working.”

Lance moved away his hands, as if he was trying to pull a sticky gum, and small bubbles lifted from the wound, keeping the shiny substance inside of them. At first they were just a few, but then the water started to absorb the purple material and clean the burn. All the little bubbles merged into one that floated over their heads.

 _“It’s not possible…”_ thought Lance, when the substance inside the water was big enough to recognize what it was.

Flames.

Purple flames.

Purple flames that still shone even though they were kept inside the water.

The purple flames of Zarkon of _Daizabaal_ , the Galra that had burned _Altean City_ one century ago.

The fire burned for a few seconds inside the water and then it faded. However, everyone had seen them.

“Was that…?” asked Keith, turning to Shiro, with eyes wide open.

“Yes, it was,” muttered the Japanese man in a dark tone, clenching his fists. “This is not good.”

Lance couldn’t agree more.

There was no scenario in his mind in which this discovery was a good thing. Did it mean that there was another person with the same destructive power as Zarkon? Or did it mean Zarkon was alive? Both?

The old ruler of Daizabaal being alive wasn’t such a crazy idea, because even though the Galra weren’t as long-lived as the Alteans, they lived more years than the humans. Lance contemplated the impossible every day… what was one more thing? After all, the history books just talk about his “defeat” at Alfor’s hands, not about his death.

“I must… speak to my father,” intervened Allura, accepting Shiro’s help to sit up. “This is worse than… we thought.”

The girl had recovered some of the color on her face and the wound looked better, thought it would probably need treatment. It seemed that once the flames had faded, her regeneration skills had kicked off. 

“So there _IS_ something happening,” muttered Pidge.

“None of your…” started Keith, but he was stopped by Allura’s hand on his arm.

“Yes, there’s something happening,” declared the girl. “Lately, there have been… disappearances in the city. Not enough to raise… alarm, but the number is increasingly worrying. And… even though we are not completely sure… we think the missing persons are _Gifted_.”

The three villains paled before those words.

If the heroes had noticed the disappearances, it meant they had started to happen in the _Middle_ and _Upper Levels_. And if they had started to happen in those floors, it meant that the number of missing people in the _Lower Level_ would be far more superior.

Even though so many people coming and going made it difficult to keep track of everyone, Lance and his friends would have to look into it. It’s not like anyone else would worry about what happens in _The Sewers_.

 _“Wait a minute.”_ A sudden thought assaulted Lance. _“What if those thugs in the alley have something to do with it? They talked about a ‘He’ being interested in_ Gifted _people.”_

“Is there something wrong?” asked Shiro, appearing in front of Lance and startling him.

“Holy, _quiz_ -… Y-yes! I mean, no! O-of course not, hot stuff!” shrieked the Cuban boy, moving back and almost tripping on the glass table near the couch. “Everything’s fine! Really fine!”

Lance felt himself blush before Shiro’s confused face. However, a few seconds later, as if somebody had pressed a switch, the Japanese man’s worried expression transformed into a  smitten one and the villain knew they had lost him again.

“Do I know you?” purred the hero. “Because you look exactly like my next boyfriend.”

 _“Aaaand… here we go again,”_ sighed Lance, more sad than annoyed, while he dodged Shiro’s attempt for a hug.

At least, he had discovered that strong emotions could make him overcome the _Love Ray’s_ influence, although only temporarily.

“Blue,” called Allura, whose clear eyes scrutinized him like she could read his soul, “are you sure everything’s alright? There’s nothing you want to tell us?”

“No! Nothing! Absolutely nothing!” lied Lance, adjusting his mask and fastening his jacket. “Look how late it is! We should go! Shi- _Black_ is now in your hands and we have to go back to our _Evil Lair_. Right, guys?”

“Yes, of course!” Nodded Hunk, frantically. “It’s getting late!”

“Very late!” exclaimed Pidge, while putting her things into the backpack and some others that Lance was sure didn’t belong to her. “Very, very late!”

That was their problem, when they became comfortable with someone. They’d let their guard down and forget that they were the villains. And that Allura and Keith were the heroes that wanted their criminal asses in jail. Shiro too, but right then he was too busy dreamily sighing.

“It’s been a pleasure, heroes!” exclaimed Lance, while pushing his friends towards the exit. “I wish we could stay longer but…”

“WAIT!” ordered Allura, with just a little bit of desperation in his voice. “What… about _Black_?”

“What about him?”

The hero, who was staring at the blue villain with puppy eyes, tripped on the crystal table while trying to follow Lance, almost cracking his head against the television. Luckily, Hunk was near and was able to catch him before he brained himself. Far from being bothered, Shiro sent Lance air kisses and a wink.

“Point taken,” answered Lance, “but he seemed better than five days ago! The effect is probably temporal! In another week or less, he will be himself again.”

“But until then… we have a problem,” said Allura. “I think it would be… better, until the effect fades, that we organize… social appointments between you and him in an intimate environment.”

“Like… a date?” questioned Hunk, incredulous. “You wanna organize dates for _Black_ and _Blue?_ ”

“Just until _Black_ returns… to normal,” assured the girl, not bothered by Hunk’s tone. “You watched on television how a criminal… almost killed _Black_ a few days ago, and you told me about how you saved him on the _Lower Level_. I want to avoid something… happening to him… especially with the city’s current situation.”

“I’m not sure…”

“In return… we’ll forget all about the very illegal _Love Ray_ ,” added Allura, with false cheerfulness, which was pretty threatening in Lance’s opinion. “Of course, you won’t be arrested while the effects… are still present. And we will accompany both… of you during your encounters. Oh! And don’t worry… _Black_ will pay the dates!”

Lance followed the white hero’s line of vision, towards his slightly ratty jacket, feeling a little offended by the insinuation.

“Will you do it?”

“Eh… I’m… well… Yeah, okay.”

“ _Blue_ ,” intervened Hunk, resting his hand on Lance’s shoulder, “are you sure that’s a good idea?”

The villain hesitated before his friend’s worried voice. Hunk knew all about his crush on Shiro and he was there during his two years in the GGHS, when ninety percent of his conversations that had nothing to do with schoolwork or his friends, were about his hero, Takashi Shirogane. He was the first one Lance told about the night in the observatory and the one who offered his shoulder to cry on when the hero hadn’t remembered him the next morning. The yellow villain knew Lance better than himself, and he knew that Cuban boy’s boy heart would be crushed if he spent his time with Shiro acting lovey-lovey and letting himself feel hope.

But, on the other hand, it was Lance’s fault Shiro was in that situation.

Furthermore, he was no longer a stupid teenager and he would not let himself be dragged by his tiny-little-crush.

“Yeah, I’m sure,” replied Lance, finally. “I’ll do it.”

Hunk nodded, accepting his friend’s decision, but his worried gaze didn’t disappear.

“Great!” Allura gripped Shiro and took the phone from his pocket. “Take _Black’s_ phone. We’ll use it to contact you… Is that a cat?”

“Yep, that’s _Kova_.” answered Lance, accepting the phone. “She’s… Shiro’s new pet. She adopted him.”

“His new _what_?”

“I wouldn’t try to pet her, if I were you. Wait for _Kova_ to make the first move or she’ll scratch you,” commented Pidge, upon seeing Keith getting closer to the cat, who walked over the table like she was the owner of the flat, “and her claws are poisonous.”

“Poisonous?” Keith removed his hand quickly. “Why the _quiznack_ do you have a poisonous cat?”

“I don’t know, ask the _Galaxy Garrison_.”

“What do you…?”

“The poison is not strong enough to kill anybody, it’ll just paralyze you for a couple of hours.” Hunk hastened to clarify, because Keith seemed two seconds away of grabbing _Kova_ and throw her out of the flat. “We’ll give you some antidote samples.”

“We’ll bring them with the adoption papers.” Pidge watched the confusion in Allura’s and Keith’s faces. “Adoption papers? You know, to make it official? Hey, we may be villains, but it doesn’t mean that everything we do in life is illegal.” Even though their Animal’s Refuge wasn’t exactly legal. “There are certain things which we don’t play around with, and animals’ lives is one of them.”

Before anybody could say anything, the conversation was interrupted by the doorbell, announcing Coran’s arrival. Or at least, they supposed it was him, judging by the melody he was trying to play pressing the button at different speeds.

Everyone had heard about the eccentricities of president Alfor’s doctor/advisor/butler/friend.

“ _Aaand_ … that’s our queue,” muttered Lance, backing up to the door before anyone tried to ask him more favors. “Goodbye, heroes!”

As they quickly left the flat, almost crashing into a very surprised Coran, and listening Shiro desperately call to “his _Blue_ ”, Lance wondered if he had made a mistake letting himself be dragged into this mess.

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

“Don’t trust heroes” was the first rule they established when Pidge, Hunk, and Lance allied to work on the other side of the law.

The rule was created as the most important and Lance had ignored it the same instant that the heroes had asked for his help. Pidge called it “being a pushover”, Hunk “having too much heart” and Lance “having an unresolved hero complex”.

Becoming a villain hadn’t precisely been his dream job.

Lance discovered his powers on his tenth birthday when his brother Marco stole his plush shark and he threw a tantrum, making all the water bottles explode. Since then, he had wanted to be a hero.

The day he was accepted at the GGHS was the happiest of his life, but it didn’t take long for the institution to end his dream.

After being physically and psychologically crushed for two years, there was hardly anything left of the teen that crossed the big metal doors of the high school, his head full of hopes and dreams.

Maybe being expelled was the best thing that could have happened to him and his friends.

Pidge was thrown out for trying to sneak into the archives, Hunk because he tried to help her when Commander Iverson threw the girl out of the office and Lance… Lance because he used his power against several teachers. The blue villain had never considered himself a violent person, but to see his friends dragged by Iverson and his minions, made something inside of him snap.

By then he wasn’t as powerful, which probably saved him from imprisonment, but the experience ended with all the pipes busted and half of the corridor flooded. All the teachers were soaked from head to toes but there was just one wounded among them: Commander Iverson, who broke his arm when he slipped in a puddle and fell to the floor.

None of the teenagers stayed to wait for their punishment, because it wasn’t exactly a secret that Iverson hated the _Gifted_ , and they knew it wouldn’t be anything good. They ran away and lost themselves in the streets of _Altean City_.

Following other villains’ examples before them, they hid in _The Sewers_ , avoiding capture thanks to people’s kindness, their powers, and Pidge’s ability to make their persecutors believe they had flew the city. Furthermore, just Pidge’s family lived in the city, but she managed to keep the Galaxy Garrison from discovering the relation between Pidge Gunderson, the hacker, and Katie Holt, the daughter of Doctor Holt. That way, they didn’t need to worry about their families being in danger.

When they got enough money, they bought the old lab and established the _Evil Lair_.

Soon, the Galaxy Garrison stopped looking for them and after the girl deleted their files from the high school database, the hero’s world forgot about Pidge, Hunk, and Lance’s existence.

After all that, the three of them reached one conclusion: all heroes were the same.

The justice’s ideals had long been dead and the beloved heroes just helped people for their own benefit, to gain fame and be on the news. The three villains were far from being model citizens, but they weren’t so hypocritical to talk about justice while they behave as the worst villains when their mansion’s or lab’s doors closed.

Part of Lance wanted to keep believing in his hero Takashi Shirogane, the person he had admired even before entering the _Galaxy Garrison_ , but another part didn’t stop reminding him that he wasn’t a kid anymore and shouldn’t cling to childish fantasies.

The heroes of his childhood’s stories didn’t exist.

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

“You, Lance McClain, are a fool.”

Despite the confidence in which Lance had accepted Allura’s proposal and how he had managed to maintain it on the way back to the _Evil Lair_ , it had vanished the same moment he got into bed.

The Cuban boy had maintained all thoughts far from his mind while he showered and followed his beauty routine, but when he put on his eye mask and headphones, his brain decided to start thinking: Why did he think it was a good idea? Why couldn’t he behave like the villain he was and leave all this mess in the heroes’ hands?

An hour later and after counting more than a thousand sheep, Lance gave up on trying to sleep and just stared at the sticky glowing stars on his ceiling.

“When everything goes bad, you’ll have to listen to Hunk saying ‘I told you so’ for months.”

Despite Hunk being a good person, he really liked to boast when he was right.

_“N-no… stop… p-please…”_

Lance went cold hearing the anguished voice. The blue villain grabbed the baby monitor on his bedside table, silently begging for the voice to be a hallucination.

_“No… no… NO!”_

He pushed aside the blankets and jumped out of the bed, almost tripping on his slippers. _Blue_ , who had been cuddling on his side, hissed at the rude wake up call. Lance didn’t bother to grab his robe as he left the room barefoot, running towards Hunk’s.

The doors were open and Pidge was already sitting on Hunk’s bed, hugging the boy. Lance stopped on the threshold and stared to the usually happy young man, covered in sweat and trembling in Pidge’s arms, which couldn’t surround him completely. Although his face was hidden by the girl’s pajamas, Lance didn’t need to see it to know he was crying.

The mice ran up and down on the pillow, squeaking and not knowing exactly what to do. Lance knew that feeling of impotence.

“It was just a nightmare, just a nightmare.” mumbled Pidge, in an effort to calm the boy. “Nothing’s gonna hurt you. You’re gonna be fine.”

Lance got closer to the bed, making enough noise so Hunk heard him approach.

“Hey, Hunk,” called the blue villain, trying to sound reassuring, “i’m gonna sit down and put a hand on your shoulder. Is that okay?”

After a few seconds of silence, Hunk nodded.

When Lance rested his hand on the Samoan boy’s arm, Hunk grabbed his wrist and pulled the blue villain towards him. Catching the signal, the Cuban boy leaned against Hunk’s back and wrapped his arms around him.

“I-I’m s-sorry…” babbled Hunk, fighting to calm his panting breath. “S-so sorry…”

“You don’t have anything to be sorry for, buddy.”

“I am a-an adult… I should be a-able to d-deal with it o-on my own…”

“Adults also have fears.” Lance insisted, before adding with fake cheer, “Just look at Pidge! She’s terrified of _Kova_! I was sure she would throw a party when Shiro adopted the cat.”

“That cat is the spawn of the Devil!”

Lance held back his laughter at the indignation in the girl’s voice and let out a scream when he felt a strong pinch on his arm. However, when he saw that Hunk didn’t react to the little joke, his smile died.

“Hunk, nobody wants you to deal with it alone… you have us. It’s not cowardly to ask for help when you need it.” Lance tightened his arms around his friend. “We’d rather have you wake us up when you have a nightmare than find out the day after that… you had a bad night. Pidge installed the _bab_ -the Hunk-monitors for that reason.”

“You’d do the same for us!” exclaimed Pidge, who was on the verge of tears and not even bothering to hide it. “You know that you’d never abandon us if we needed help! Even if we were too stupid… or stubborn… to accept it.”

The Cuban boy put his hand over Pidge’s, who clung to it.

Lance didn’t dare to move even when his body started to cramp, fearing that he’d break the strange calm of the room. He didn’t know how many minutes had passed, holding Hunk’s body and clasping Pidge’s hand, until Hunk managed to calm down.

Only when he felt his friend stir, he loosened his grip.

Hunk’s eyes were red and swollen, just like his nose, and his face was covered in tears and snot. As he watched the boy trying to wipe his face with the sleeves of his pajamas, Lance felt like crying too. That vision was one the blue villain had to contemplate too many nights in the last two years… since they rescued Hunk from the Galaxy Garrison.

“Do you wanna talk about it?”

The Samoan boy shook his head after a long pause.

“Okay, don’t worry about it.” whispered Lance, getting up. “Why don’t you have a shower? You’ll feel better after cleaning up the sweat. Pidge’ll change the sheets and I’m gonna make some tea.”

“Lance… it’s not like I don’t wanna talk…” started Hunk, wringing his hands nervously. “It’s just…”

“Hunk, it doesn’t matter,” interrupted the blue villain, softly. “You don’t have to tell us anything if you don’t want to. Talking about it may help you, but it has to be when you feel ready.” Lance grabbed a towel from the closet and gave it to Hunk with a smile. “Go shower before you catch a cold.”

“Hunk!” Pidge called before the boy left the room, “Y-you can tell us anything. We aren’t gonna judge you, no matter what.”

Hunk looked at her, a little surprised, but then he smiled. It was almost a real smile.

The door closed behind him.

“The sheets are in the closet. I’ll be right back.”

Before Pidge could say anything, Lance left Hunk’s bedroom, too quickly to seem casual.

When the blue villain entered the kitchen, the nonchalant mask he had been wearing faded away and Lance let himself fall back against the counter. He closed his eyes and slowly breathe in and out.

Hunk needed him, Pidge needed him… he couldn’t fall apart.

Hunk had never told them exactly what happened in the seven days he was locked up in the GGP’s High Security Prison. Everyone knew the rumors about what happened behind those walls, but nobody really talked about it. Lance wanted to believe that his wild imagination painted it worse that it was, but a glance at Hunk’s face was enough for him to think: “What if it was worse than any of the hypothetical scenarios of his head?”

“Stop it. You’re no help like this.” Lance reproached himself, shaking his head. “Take the _quiznacking_ kettle and prepare the _quiznacking_ tea.”

Compared to the rest of the rooms in the base, the kitchen was rather small and it could hardly contain all the cabinets and domestic appliances that had been added over the years… in some kind of organized chaos. Hunk himself had been responsible of assembling it with Lance’s help, who had an innate gift to find whatever you needed to buy at the best price available. The Cuban boy still remembered the nights that Hunk spent repairing old appliances, to turn that room into a kitchen worthy of a chef… and the joy of his face once it had been finished.

Lance grabbed the kettle full of water and put it on the stove, while trying to decide what kind of tea Hunk would like that night. His thoughts soon were interrupted by light steps in the kitchen.

“We should try the lavender tea,” Pidge suggested. “I’ve already changed the sheets.”

The blue villain took the tea box and three mugs from the cabinet. Usually none of them had trouble saying what they were thinking, but in the middle of the night, they were both reluctant to break the silence.

“Hey, Lance…” she mumbled, “Do you think Hunk should go back to therapy with Dr. Sharma? I know we haven’t got much money, b-but I could ask for extra shifts at the store. I also have some money saved…. And… and some machines I have fixed and can be sold for a good price…”

“Everything’s gonna be fine,” interrupted Lance, softly. “It’s been a stressful week for everyone. I think we should wait a few days for everything to calm down and if the situation with Hunk doesn’t get better, we’ll talk to him and Dr. Sharma.” The Cuban boy gripped her arm and ruffled her hair until the girl started to protest. “And what is that about ‘we don’t have much money’? Maybe we aren’t the rich people of the _Upper Level_ , but we aren’t the poor rats they think we are! Tomorrow I’ll call Rolo and ask him if he can get me a job at that coffee shop in the _Middle Level_ he told me about. You hear that? _Middle Level_! Soon, we’ll be bathing in a pool of money! Or we could try our luck with another bank… this time without the _Death Ray_.”

“Idiot…” muttered Pidge, trying to hide the fondness in her voice.

A few seconds later, Pidge threw herself at Lance and hugged him, making him back up several steps. The blue villain winced when his hip collided against the kitchen countertop, but did not comment on it as he hugged back the girl.

Lance sat on the floor, one of his arms around Pidge and gazing at the silhouettes of the kitchen’s furniture in the dim blue light of the fluorescents. Pidge and Hunk had installed them all over the base, including the long corridors and the stairs, so that none of the rooms were dark. Neither of them liked the darkness, and Hunk was terrified of it. Furthermore, Lance loved how the bluish tone made it seem as if he was under water, which made him feel calm.

Maybe it was what their friends intended when they had the idea.

“It’s my fault.”

“It’s not your fault,” denied Lance, who had been waiting the comment since the girl entered the kitchen.

“Yes, it is,” Pidge talked back, clenching her fists. “If I hadn’t been snooping in the Galaxy Garrison files, the GGP wouldn’t have caught Hunk. You warned me how dangerous it was, especially after we left the GGHS and became villains… but I didn’t listen to you.”

“The GGP agents dumped your father in your house after several weeks of him being missing, giving you and your family a bullshit explanation, and he hasn’t woken up in eight years! It’s logical you wanted answers! A person does not just disappear and then return in a coma!”

“And look where my search for answers took me! To have Hunk captured and tortured!” exploded Pidge. “When I was trying to find out the truth, I didn’t think about how I was endangering you both! The price for the answers I didn’t get was too high.”

Pidge didn’t talk much about her family, so Lance didn’t know all the details about what happened. He knew the green villain almost hadn’t spoken to them since they left the GGHS, after some kind of big breakdown in the Holt’s house. With her father in a coma, her brother defending the GG and her mother not knowing how to repair the bridge between the two siblings, it was no mystery why Pidge didn’t want to return home.

Lance had only seen Matt once or twice. He worked as an engineer and informant for the GG and he didn’t think they had anything to do with the “accidental injuries that lead Dr. Holt to a coma”, the reason of the continuous fights with his sister.

No, the Cuban boy wasn’t surprised that Pidge had tried to find answers, in an attempt to get his family back. Neither Hunk nor Lance blamed her for what happened, but even two years later, she was unable to realize it.

The blue villain also knew that was the reason Pidge was so protective with Hunk and Lance.

“If you hadn’t come back for me, the GGP wouldn’t have arrested him,” sniffed the girl. “It should have been me who ended in that prison.”

“It was our decision to go after you. Nobody should have ended in that prison. Not you, not Hunk.”

“I did it to myself! Hunk didn’t deserve what happened!”

“Neither do you! Nobody deserves something like that! It’s not your fault!” insisted the Cuban boy. “It’s the GG’s fault. They were the ones who tortured Hunk, they are the reason he still has nightmares… Not you.”

Pidge clenched her fists, frustrated, as if she wanted to argue more.

“It doesn’t matter now.” Lance interrupted her, knowing he wouldn’t be able to convince her of anything. “What we have to focus on is helping Hunk. Show him that we’re here for him and we will be willing to listen when he’s ready to open up.”

“When I find out what they did to Hunk, I will destroy the Galaxy Garrison,” promised Pidge, drying her tears on her pajamas and looking at Lance with cold fury.

“Vengeance is not what Hunk needs right now,” muttered Lance, getting up from the floor and removing the kettle from the stove, “but when that moment arrives, I will be on your side, shaking the walls of the GG.”

Lance poured the hot water in the mugs as Pidge put the tea bags inside. When they went back to the bedroom, Hunk was already sitting on the bed in clean pajamas. It was the ones they gave him on his birthday: yellow with tiny fried eggs printed.

“How are you feeling?”

“Better,” muttered Hunk, accepting the mug. “You don’t need to stay, you can go back to your rooms.”

“Nonsense,” replied Lance. “Make room for us, I don’t wanna fall out of the bed during the night.”

The yellow villain looked at them for a few seconds and then moved, so Pidge could sit on his left and Lance on his right. All three of them, sitting side by side with their backs against the wall and his feet dangling off the edge of the bed, sipped their drinks in silence. The four mice split up in their laps, dozing peacefully.

“Don’t you find what happened today a little strange?” asked Pidge.

“Which part of our day? You’ll have to be more specific, _Pidgeon_.”

“Well… everything,” The girl frowned, looking inside her mug. “That big conspiracy, the purple flames, the missing people, the murder on the docks… Do you remember the day that Keith and Allura almost caught me?”

“You needed five showers to remove the smell of the dumpster. How could we forget it?”

“I went to fix our dock’s cameras, which ‘casually’ had been malfunctioning all week,” explained the girl, ignoring Lance’s comment. “I checked the cameras on the night of the murder and guess what.”

“They didn’t work?”

“Exactly, none of them were working. Even the ones that I replaced with new models!”

“That’s not good,” mumbled Hunk, whose face had recovered its color.

“Whoever it is that’s disconnecting them knows the docks. This has been going on for a long time,” concluded the green villain. “If the heroes have noticed the missing people, it’s because they are happening in the upper levels…”

“…which means there has to be a lot more disappearances in the _Lower Level_ ,” continued Hunk, reflecting the same thoughts Lance had. “Do you think the same thing happened to Mrs. Lloyd’s son? It’s been days since he’s been home.”

“Probably not. That scoundrel will appear when he needs more money,” Lance tried to reassure his friend, “but I’m worried about the men who attacked Shiro and me. They seemed very interested in the fact that I’m a _Gifted_.”

Lance couldn’t stop thinking about his attackers mysterious’ words. Was ‘him’ the cause of all disappearances?

“We have to figure out who is the victim,” said Lance. “All the _Gifted_ are in danger. You, me… anybody could be next.”

“They couldn’t have known the location of all cameras since the beginning.” The girl’s eyes were shining with determination, as they did when she came across a puzzle. “I’m sure if I check the recordings of the last months, I’ll find something interesting.”

“Are you sure it’s a good idea to get into this?” questioned Hunk. “Maybe we should leave it to the heroes… for once in our lives.”

“We’ll only know whether it’s a good idea if we investigate a little more.”

“Besides, the GG isn’t gonna worry about _The Sewers_ ,” scoffed Pidge. “If we don’t protect them, nobody’s gonna do it.”

Hunk’s expression turned sad and before anybody could say anything, a beeping noise startled them. Pidge reached into her pajamas pocket and pulled something out of it.

“Is that Shiro’s phone?” asked Lance, frowning. “What are you doing with it?”

“I took it from your bedroom as you were putting that goo on your face. I don’t care they are the heroes of this city, I don’t trust _Voltron_.” growled the green villain. “I have deactivated the GPS and scanned the phone, to see if they had hidden some kind of locator or bug.”

“And what is your diagnosis, Dr. _Glinch_? Do they trust us enough to not betray us?”

“They don’t trust us, but they need us if they aren’t planning to lock up Shiro. Out of all the bad things, we are the better solution,” explained Pidge. “We haven’t killed anyone and our only crimes are theft and destruction of property, especially GG’s. And it’s not as if we spend every second of the day committing crimes.”

“Pidge, you stole Shiro’s _Mercury Game Flux,_ ” pointed out Hunk.

“I didn't steal his _Mercury Game Flux_! Just one of his games. It’s not like he was using it. I was gonna give it back.”

“We don’t even have a _Mercury Game Flux_!”

“I’ve noticed, Lance! That’s why I’ll give the game back.”

Lance and Pidge stared at each other, before bursting out laughing. Hunk soon accompanied them with his cheerful laughs, almost staining the newly changed sheets with tea.

“What does the message say?” asked the yellow villain, when they managed to calm down enough to utter a word.

“It’s Allura.” announced Pidge. “She’s suggesting days and places for the date… I think. The language she uses is a little bit… convoluted. Why does she call the dates ‘social encounters’?”

“Social encounter?” Lance took the phone from Pidge’s hands and read the message. “Wow, the message is written like a contract. It makes me feel like a businessman… or an escort. Very _Fifty Shades_ of her.”

“Tell her we charge double for any kind of sexual contact.”

“Very funny, Pidge.”

Lance typed the answer, making sure he wrote complete and concise sentences, because the blue villain was sure that Allura was the kind of person who wouldn’t like to receive: “ _Ok"._ And three separate messages for: _"2moro iz fiN_ ”.

“Come on, time for bed. You two have to wake up early for work,” Lance grabbed his friends and forced them to lie on the bed. He didn’t bother to suggest that Hunk took the day off, because he knew his friend wouldn’t accept. “I don’t think they’d appreciate if you fell asleep on the job again.”

“They aren’t gonna fire me, I’m the only intelligent person in the store,” bragged the girl, but lying down next to Hunk, while Lance did the same on the other side. “And Sal adores Hunk.”

“Lucky you.” grumbled Lance, remembering how his ex-boss hated his guts and had made his life a living hell until he fired him.

The three villains wriggled to accommodate themselves in the narrow bed. If it weren’t for Hunk grabbing him on time, Lance would have fallen from the bed. Finally, the Cuban boy ended sprawled on top of Hunk, Pidge curled beside the yellow villain, muttering that she should have stolen Shiro’s bed instead of one of his video games.

Lance hoped that it was enough to ward off Hunk’s nightmares, if just for one night.

Just as the blue villain was falling asleep, cradled by his friend’s breathing, a buzzing startled him.

“Another message?” growled Pidge, hiding her face on Hunk’s armpit. “Do the superheroes not have a bedtime?”

 However, in that occasion it wasn’t Allura, although the message was from her phone.

_“Thank you – S.”_

Lance blinked, a little confused. Thank you? Why Shiro was thanking him? It was true that what he did for the hero deserved a thank you, but he wasn’t sure a message at ass o’clock in the night was needed.

 _“Which part are you referring to, exactly?”_ joked Lance.

He had to wait several minutes for the response and the one he received left him even more confused.

_“The nights.”_

The nights? What the _quiznack_? What did he mean? Was it some kind of strange pick up line whose meaning escaped him?

“Laance…” moaned Hunk, before the blue villain could ask him what he meant. “The phone…”

“Sorry.”

 _“Whatever you say, weirdo. Goodnight, Shiro.”_ Lance rapidly typed. 

The answer didn’t even take a second to arrive.

 _“Goodnight,_ Blue _.”_

That night, despite everything that happened, Lance fell asleep with a smile on his lips.

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Warnings** : description of a burn and torture mentioned, but happends off-screen. 
> 
> The plot thickens. TRUTHS REVEALED!! **ANGST!!**
> 
> Poor Hunk, why I do this to him? When I said to my brain that I wanted Hunk to be more involved on the story, I wasn't this what I was refering to, you traitorous brain.  
>  Poor Pidge too. I love her character, because she's stubborn, protective with her family and she doesn't stop until he fullfilles her objetives, no matter what. In the show, she has her family back but her kind of mindset, can cause a lot of troubles. And here I am, being a bad person and writting about it.  
> Also, people in the fandom, people seem to think that she's some kind of sarcastic gremlin, sometimes even rude, and yes, she can be like that... but she's also very kind, worries about his friends and gives huuugs.  
> And Lance... poor Lance, he wants to be there to his friends. Oh, and yes, he has its own troubles... some which will be revealed in the coming chapters.
> 
> I'm sorry there hadn't been much Shiro or Shance moments in this chapter, but I promise that you'll have lots of them in the next chapter.
> 
> And one more thing. Probably you will have to wait for the next chapter. I'm planning a huge thing and I still haven't starting writting it, so... please, have patience with me!


	4. Lance’s Chronicles: The Shark, the Hero and the Ferris Wheel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, Earthlings! First of all, I'm really sorry for taking so long to publish the chapter! I have almost no time to write and this chapter was longer and fullo feelings, so it took me longer to write it. However, I'm really happy with the result, so I hope you love it too.
> 
> Also, I'm really happy season 6 confirmed what I alredy knew: Shiro is a huge nerd and dramatic af. That's the reason I love him. Well, one of the thousand reasons I love him.
> 
> Yes, the chapter it's a reference to Chronicles of Narnia.
> 
> Thank you for all your comments and kudos! They are the fuel to my inspiration!  
> And thank you once more to my fabulous beta [exo_moon](https://archiveofourown.org/users/exo_moon/pseuds/exo_moon) for checking this chapter! 
> 
> For warnings, check the end notes. But nothing too heavy.
> 
> Enjoy!

**Chapter 4 – Lance’s Chronicles: The Shark, the Hero and the Ferris Wheel**

 

 _“_ _“When you've been fighting for it all your life._  
_You've been struggling to make things right._  
_That’s how a superhero learns to fly._  
_Every day, every hour, turn the pain into power”._

_“ **The Script** – Superheroes”_

 

Dating Shiro, even fake-dating, was not like Lance imagined.

It wasn’t bad, just... weird. And Lance didn’t mean the chaperones that accompanied them on each date. Maybe it was because the Cuban boy was used to looking at Takashi Shirogane, the hero, from afar instead of interacting with Shiro, the real guy.

The hero was self-confident, moved with authority and was always in control, which was why Lance’s villainous alter ego had been so invested in breaking that façade.

Shiro was all that... but it wasn’t _ALL_ he was. The real Shiro was sassy and childish, but also... flirty and playful. And sometimes, shy and awkward, like the Superman who becomes Clark Kent.

However, maybe the last thing was because of the forced encounters.

Or perhaps it was the _Love Ray’s_ influence, because that Shiro was also a mess: one moment the man was relaxed and telling a funny story of his past (skipping names and easy recognizable places), and the next second he froze and turned again into lovesick Shiro. The change was sometimes so fast it made Lance’s head spin.

All the same, Lance liked this real version of Shiro more: the human disaster, the closeted nerd that caught all his references and had a wicked sense of humor. Or as real as it could be regarding the circumstances.

Lance was falling HARD for him.

The blue villain knew that, but he had no idea how to stop it, not even if he really wanted to. The situation was a train wreck and Lance was just waiting for the other shoe to drop.

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

Their first date was the most awkward thing that Lance had experienced in a long time. There was no other way to describe it.

Both teams, villains and heroes, had met in front of the big fountain in _Central Altean Park_ , dressed in their civilian clothes but their faces covered by masks. Shiro brought a bouquet of sunflowers, which was shoved into Lance’s face when he approached. They were the villain’s favorite flower, but he couldn’t enjoy them under the scrutiny of four pairs of eyes. The only good thing was that he could contemplate Shiro’s slightly flushed ears while he thanked him.

But overall, Lance wished with all his heart that the ground would swallow him whole. Or swallow all their companions, who only worsened the situation.

After two hours of clipped conversation on a blanket cramped with heroes and villains, Lance thanked the heavens for bringing the storm that ended the date.

A sensible, rational person would have ended the strange experiment after that disaster, but that wasn’t the case. When Lance, soggy and miserable, arrived to the _Evil Lair_ , he had another message from Allura. For some strange reason, the girl seemed determined for it to work. Allura, with an enthusiasm that could only be called manic, kept organizing dates: another park, the zoo, a restaurant so expensive that Lance was afraid to contaminate it with his poor presence, more parks...

Some encounters were better than others, but all of them ended badly.

Lance wondered when the effect of the _Love Ray_ was gonna disappear and everything would go back to normal, so he could stop feeling so confused. The villain didn’t want to learn how Shiro took his coffee (more sugar than coffee), what his favorite animal was (the cat) or when his birthday was (the twenty-ninth of February). When everything ended, Lance could go back to lusting from afar, without fearing his heart would be broken.

So when Lance got a new message a week after their first disastrous date, he wondered why he still bothered.

McClain stubbornness with a hint of masochism, probably.

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

 _“Someone has to tell Allura that the parks are not romantic in the middle of the afternoon, no matter what the films say,”_ thought Lance, jumping out of the way of a frisbee. _“Too many crying children, people running and dogs pooping on the grass”._

Shiro and Lance had been walking around the paved roads of _Central Altean Park_ for about forty minutes, but the blue villain felt like it had been hours. The hero also seemed bored to tears. He was too polite to say anything, but his gaze swept across the scenery like looking for the fastest route of escape.

The landscape had turned orange and red with the arrival of fall, and the soft breeze had forced Lance to wear his jacket. Hidden paths between the trees, stone benches, flowers that bloomed even during the coldest months of the year... No doubt it was a very beautiful park, a place that Lance would have chosen for a date if it had been real and not an elaborate plan to help a superhero. He would have also left his chaperones at home, because it wasn’t really fun or romantic to be followed by four overzealous persons that watched all your movements, waiting for something to go wrong to act.

“Not your kind of date?” asked Shiro, whispering, seizing the opportunity when Allura was distracted signing autographs for children and Keith looked at a little chihuahua in a pink tutu with boredom.

“This isn’t a date,” answered Lance, absently. However, as soon as he saw the brief flash of hurt in Shiro’s eyes, he hurried to add. “I-I mean... that it’s not too... romantic to be considered a date. Right?”

“I guess you’re right...” muttered the hero, glooming.

“There’s nothing wrong with this place!” exclaimed the villain, ignoring the little voice in his head, asking him to shut up. “It’s just the preparation! For example, too many people. I would have waited until the night before suggesting a walk in the park.”

“The rangers close the doors at night. How...?” Shiro stopped talking when Lance raised his eyebrows. “Would you sneak into the park to have a date?”

“Well, I’m a villain, that’s what we do. I could tell you three more illegal things that I’ve done in the past two days that aren’t trespassing,” exaggerated Lance. It had been a quiet week. “And you know that it would be a thousand times more romantic! Just imagine... the paths illuminated by the moonlight, the silence broken by the wind gliding through the branches, the danger of being discovered and arrested for public indecency...”

“A-arrested for public indecency?” sputtered Shiro, drawing Pidge and Hunk’s attention, who had been watching a kite that looked like a goldfish and talking about physics.

“I’m pretty confident that a date like that would land me sexy times... really good sexy times.” Lance winked and gave the Japanese man the finger guns. “Don’t you think?”

Shiro remained in an incredulous silence for a few seconds, before he started laughing.

The blue villain was mesmerized by the image: the hero’s cheeks were flushed but his eyes shone with joy as he laughed without any restrain. Lance fought down the desire to put his hands to his chest, as if trying to contain the beating of his heart.

And maybe that’s why he wasn’t able to shut his mouth.

“W-would you want to go somewhere else? With me?” blurted Lance, feeling his face heat when Shiro looked at him. “J-just us. No chaperones.”

“Your protectors won’t get mad at you if you ditch them?” asked the hero, with a playful glint in his grey eyes.

“No more than yours,” replied the Cuban boy, pointing at Allura and Keith, who had attracted a bigger crowd that were not fooled by their civilian disguises. “Is that a no?”

As response, Shiro grabbed Lance’s hand and pulled him towards the line of trees beside the path. Giggling like two teenagers, they ran away amongst the bushes to put some distance between them before their friends noticed their disappearing act.

 _Central Altean Park_ was the biggest park in the whole city, rivaling even New York’s. It was a masterpiece of engineering and gardening, a park at the center of the city that took up the three levels. More than a park, it looked like a forest or a jungle. It was the pride of _Altean City_.

Its size also allowed you to lose your pursuers... if you didn’t get lost before that. Luckily, Lance had used this escape route countless times, so he was able to navigate easily through the trees until they stopped hearing the indignant shrieks of their friends. Without letting go of Shiro’s warm hand, Lance led the hero to the northern exit.

When Shiro and Lance went through the metal doors to the streets of the _Middle Level_ , they looked at each other momentarily and both burst out laughing, ignoring the strange looks they received.

“I-I can’t believe we did that.” Shiro wheezed, drying his tears with a wide smile. “My friends are going to kill me.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll be the one who’ll end up dead. After all, it was my idea.” The Cuban boy tried to maintain a stern face, but the corners of his mouth kept rising without his permission. “But it’ll be worth it. I had a moral obligation to save this date.”

The hero’s black and white hair was a mess, his clothes were in disarray and his cheeks were tinted with pink while his eyes shone with mischief. Lance decided that happiness suited him better than any sexy authoritarian pose.

“Save the date? What did you have in mind, Mr. _Don Juan_?”

“ _Don Juan_ was an inconsiderate dick.” scoffed Lance, moving his hand in a disparaging gesture. “Prepare yourself, Mr. Takashi Shirogane, to be seduced... Have you ever been to the _Fall’s Carnival_?”

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

 _Fall’s Carnival_ , among the _Spring’s Carnival_ , had been held in _Altean City_ for three centuries. The only time it wasn’t celebrated was the year of the _Great Fire_. After so many deaths to mourn and half of the city destroyed, having fun was the last thing on people's minds.

Twice a year and spanning one week, the carnival was installed on the outskirts of the city, this being one of the few times where people of the _Upper Level_ came to _The Sewers_.

Lots of things had changed since the first time the carnival came to _Altean City_ , but the happiness it brought with its arrival was still the same.

“ _Tadaaa_! What do you think?” asked Lance, extending his arms like a mage showing his last trick.

“Chaotic,” muttered Shiro, moving away to avoid being barreled over by a group of children running toward the big arc that made up the entrance, announcing in flamboyant letters: ‘FALL’S CARNIVAL’, “Noisy.”

“I know. Isn’t it great?” exclaimed the villain, not discouraged by Shiro’s skeptical tone. “But, _amigo mío*_ , the carnival is much more than that. I can’t believe you’ve never come here. How many years have you been living in _Altea_? Nine? Ten?”

“Eleven,” answered the hero, his gaze full of sadness as he contemplated a mother with a child in her arms. “I came from Japan to study in the _Galaxy Garrison’s Military School_   and become part of the GGP when I was sixteen.”

“W-well, I come to the carnival every year with _Yellow_ and _Glinch_ ,” exclaimed the Cuban boy, wanting to repeatedly punch himself for putting that misery on Shiro’s face, “And now it’s time you do it too.”

“Oh, really? Then you’re an expert. Should I call you _Master_?”

You needn’t be a genius to see that Shiro’s heart wasn’t in the joke, but Lance would take what he could.

“You’re a little shit,” scoffed Lance, scowling and pretending to be angry. “Come on, I know the best places to buy cotton candy.”

Lance almost flinched when Shiro slipped their hands together, but he recovered fast and laced their fingers.

As the season indicated, the carnival had been decorated in the colors of fall: oranges, browns and reds. The tents of the food stalls and the booths, the costumes of the carnies, the handkerchiefs and flags that hung from poles and ropes... and even the lights of the attractions shone in those same tones. A mixture of the smells of popcorn, cotton candy, roasted meat... all floating in the air and feeding the young man’s appetite. 

“Where do you wanna go first? The booths? The Ferris wheel? The _Love Tunnel_?” asked Lance. “I’m sure that if we ask real nice, they’ll let you ride on the _Witch Train_!”

“I don’t know. This is my first time.” Shiro smiled, with fake innocence. “Please, be gentle.”

“B-but this is a date a-and I’m a gentleman.” Lance stammered, blushing up to his scalp. “What do you want to do?”

“Well as you said, this is a date, so we have to do every romantic cliché.” Shiro announced after thinking for a few seconds. “We have to go to the Love Tunnel, share some cotton candy, ride the Ferris wheel... which of course will stop when we are at the top. And then...”

“It’s a good plan”. Lance _DIDN’T_ imagine the kiss scene of the romantic comedies he loved so much with their faces in the main characters’ place. “In that case, choosing the number one cliché of the list, we’ll go to the booths and I’ll win you a plush. If you behave, I’ll even let you choose which one.”

“That so? Then I’ll be a good boy.”

Lance absolutely did NOT react to Shiro’s suggestive tone. Him tripping on a rope from one of the stalls was completely accidental and non-related.

It was the second day of the _Fall’s Carnival_ , so the place was so crowded that it was impossible to navigate among the people without colliding with anyone. The villain hung onto Shiro’s hand, fearing losing him in the crowd, even more when he realized that the hero’s attention was everywhere: the fire eater, the puppet show that showed a battle between puppet-Alfor and puppet-Zarkon, the screams of the people on the rollercoaster, the children laughing on the carousel... The only thing Lance lamented was that he couldn’t stop to stare at Shiro’s awed expression.

But none of that mattered half an hour later, when Lance had managed to knock down all the toothpicks with the pellet gun and all that awe was focused on him. All that with the addition of all people who had stopped to admire his shooting skills. That was a big boost of ego.  

“I told you I’d win you a plush, you faithless man!” bragged Lance, pointing to a big ass panda plush.

“Color me impressed, sharpshooter.”

“I used to win prizes for my nephews,” confessed the Cuban boy, with a warm sensation in his chest due to the nickname. “Every booth’s owner hated me.” As invoked, a big burly man put the panda plush in Lance’s hands, glaring at him with hate. “ _Aaaand_... that hasn’t changed, it seems. Shiro, what are you doing?”

“You brought me to this carnival and won me a prize.” Shiro winked, taking money out of his wallet and putting it on the counter. “What kind of boyfriend I would be if I didn’t do the same? Think about which plush you want.”

 _“It’s not real, it’s not real...”_ Lance reminded himself while fighting not to lose his smile as the owner of the booth gave Shiro five balls.

However, soon it was the villain’s turn to be impressed, when the hero started to knock down the can pyramids. Lance cheered and clapped along the little public that had gathered around them, and laughed when Shiro presented him with reverence an enormous shark plush.

“Showoff,” huffed Lance, taking the plush and hugging it against his chest. He surely looked ridiculous holding the two plushies, but he didn’t care.

“If you don’t want it, I can take it back.”

“No! It’s mine! You can’t have it back!” screamed Lance, trying to bat away Shiro’s grabby hands without letting go the plushies. “But I guess you can have _Po_.”

“I feel fortunate with that generous offering,” replied the Japanese man, taking the bear and burying his hands on the soft fur. “ _Po_? Like the _Teletubbies_ or _Kung Fu Panda_?”

“ _Kung Fu Panda_. When I was a child, I was scared of the _Teletubbies_.”

“How-? Nevermind. Well, then you don’t have to fear them anymore, _Lenny_ will protect you.”

“ _Shark Tale_?”

“ _Shark Tale_.”

Lance saw the man of the booth giving them the stink eye, and for a moment he was tempted to suggest playing another round just to see him pale. However, Shiro took his hand again and all those thoughts disappeared from his mind.

From the booth, they went to the cotton candy stand. From the food stand, to the crash cars. After that, to the rollercoaster, the flying chairs, the Haunted House (Lance won’t EVER repeat that experience), the mirror labyrinth... The hours passed without Lance realizing and soon the sun was disappearing on the horizon, while the lights of the carnival illuminated the night.

With their hands entwined, a big plush under his arm, the strident music resonating in his ears and while contemplating the reflection of the lights in Shiro’s eyes as he told an anecdote, Lance could say without a doubt that he hadn’t felt this happy in a long time. It was pathetic to know that the best date of his whole life wasn’t even real, but in that moment there was nothing that could make Lance sad.

If this was the closest thing to a date he’d have with Shiro, then he was gonna enjoy the heck out of it.

 _“I like him.”_ Lance thought, clinging to Shiro’s fingers with more force than needed. _“Heartbreak be damned, I really like him.”_

The Cuban boy wanted. _WANTED_.

He wanted to break into _Central Altean Park_ at night and have his dream walk under the moonlight. He wanted to kiss him. He wanted to pamper him. He wanted... wanted to make Shiro feel like the most desired man in the universe. He wanted to make him happy. He wanted to introduce him to his family. He wanted to make plans for the future and think about forever.

And that scared him.

Lance always fell hard and fast, and it never ended well for him. His ex-boyfriends and ex-girlfriends accusing him of being _clingy_ were a great example. However, the blue villain would rather call it “ _being a goddamn stupid fool_ ”. Pidge always told him he chooses the biggest assholes to date and Hunk said that he had too much love to give... and someday one person would accept it.

“Are you okay?”

“Eh? Oh! YES! I’m great!” Lance quickly lied. “I w-was just thinking...” The villain’s eyes searched for something to use as an excuse. “...the Ferris wheel! Yes! The Ferris wheel! It’s the time to ride it now! Number one cliché of the date! It has the best views of _Altean City_!”

Shiro didn’t look very convinced, but he let himself be dragged.

Regardless of the long queue, they were lucky: they didn’t have to wait for too long and they got a cabin to themselves. Even though the last thing was thanks to Lance, who very loudly proclaimed how Ferris wheels made him sick and how he hoped not to puke this time, as Shiro was dying of embarrassment in the background before Lance’s interpretative skills. Or maybe he was just allergic to blatant lies.

However, the hero’s disapproving gaze _(“Come on, Shiro, it’s not that bad... I was the one who lied, like a true villain”_ ) disappeared when the Ferris wheel started spinning and they could watch the lights of _Altean City_.

Even though the beauty of the city was unique, lighting the night with thousands of tiny lights, that wasn’t what hypnotized Lance. It was the view of the ocean beyond the cliffs beside the plain where the carnival had been installed. There was a full moon and the movement of the water raised flashes of silver. At this distance, Lance couldn’t hear the roar of the waves crashing against the rocks but he was able to smell the ocean. If he closed his eyes, the villain could imagine himself strolling along the beaches of Cuba, with the sand underneath his bare feet and a surfboard under his arm-

“Hey, _Blue_...”

Shiro’s voice startled him. With shame, Lance realized that he probably had been silent for several minutes, gripping the metal bars of their cabin and looking at the distance.

“Y-yeah, Shiro?”

“I love your jacket, it’s soFISHticated.”

Lance blinked, while his brain tried to process what he had heard.

“You didn’t,” gasped Lance. “You didn’t use that line.”

The Japanese man smiled, but not his flirty smile, but the one that Lance had named his “little-shit-smile”. Shiro even had the nerve to wink and use the finger guns against him.

“Can you call a lifeguard? Because I’m drowning in your eyes.”

“Stop it,” groaned the villain.

“I can’t swim... can I hold your floaties?”

“Don’t you dare, Shirogane!”

“I wish I was an octopus, so I would have eight hands to touch your butt with.”

Lance grabbed the panda plush and started to hit Shiro with it, demanding he stop that ridiculous display of ridiculousness. Although his attack wasn’t especially effective if he did it laughing and with his cheeks flushed. The passenger car rocked dangerously and Lance was sure that the occupants of the other cabins thought they were crazy, but at the moment he couldn't care less.

“T-that... that was so... bad.” Lance panted, trying to recover his breath after laughing so much and after his failed attempt to suffocate Shiro with the plush to end the embarrassment. “How do you know so many ocean-themed pick-up lines?”

“Natural talent.”

“You’re ridiculous,” huffed Lance, crossing his arms and pretending to be angry.

Shiro just shrugged, smile not disappearing.

Lance knew it hadn’t been a casualty when Shiro decided to use his pick-up lines, because despite the happiness on his face, he could see the worry in the Japanese man’s eyes.

 With his messy hair and the soft looking blue sweater, Shiro gave off an air of vulnerability that made Lance want to throw caution to the wind and tell him his thoughts, his secrets... about his family: how he almost learned to swim before he could walk, how he competed against his sister to see who could find the most beautiful shell, how his grandmother and him were the only waterbenders in the family...

The Cuban boy shook his head, trying to push that stupid ideas out of his mind. Trusting heroes was a bad idea.

However, his gaze was attracted by Shiro’s relaxed smile, in how the wind stirred his white and black hair as they descended after a few seconds on the top of the Ferris wheel. Inside that cubicle, surrounded by white iron bars, it seemed as if the outside world did not exist.

“Hey, Shiro,” called Lance, remembering something that had been eating at him for days. “What did you mean that time with “the nights”? I mean, not to brag, but you have every reason to be thankful to me and my friends. However, which nights are you referring to exactly?”

“What do you... _o-oh_ , the message,” muttered Shiro, suddenly nervous. “ _Em_... well. You s-saved me, but... _em_... I meant... _eehh_... the thing is...” The hero took a breath of air and looked at Lance with determination. “ _Blue_ , there’s something I wanna tell you... I....”

“Hey, boys, end of the ride.”

Both flinched, startled by the gruffy voice.

The owner of the Ferris wheel, a big burly man wearing a flower shirt, had opened the door of the cabin and was making gestures for them to come out.

“Yeah, sure!” exclaimed Lance, grabbing his shark and almost tripping on the way out. “Thank you.”

Even though the sensation inside the Ferris wheel was of weightlessness and it felt like the time didn’t pass, the trip couldn’t last forever.

“Enjoy the carnival, boys.”

Nervous like he had been caught doing something wrong, Lance turned around so he didn’t have to look at Shiro hugging the panda against his chest. It was time to put an end to the date. His heart wouldn't stop betraying him.

Lance took the mobile phone from his pocket and turned it on.

He wasn’t really surprised when it started to vibrate, announcing a great number of messages and missed calls. Most of the messages where panicky ones and very explicit threats of what would happen when his friends put their hands of him. However, when he reached the end of the large list, Lance discovered one that made him freeze.

“ _While you enjoyed your date, I discovered the identity of the dock’s dead body. Ring a bell? – P._ ”

It was a photography from an autopsy report, just showing a pale and bruised face. However, it didn’t take long for Lance to recognize it.

“It’s not possible...”

Big nose, big ears, blonde hair and enormous front teeth... It was “ _Rat Face_ ”, the man who he had fought in that alley from the _Lower Level_. 

Lance felt sick. He didn’t really believe in casualties, much less with a life like his.

“ _Blue_? _Blue_! Are you feeling okay?”

“Y-yeah, yeah, of course!” lied Lance. “I’m just a little dizzy, probably from the Ferris Wheel. We should...”

And then an explosion shook the ground.

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

Chaos unraveled.

Smoke. Panic. People screaming and trying to flee, not caring what or whom they ran over.

A woman in high heels stomped on Lance’s feet. A brawny man with glasses on the verge of a panic attack, pushed him and almost sent him to the floor to be trampled by the crowd, if it hadn’t been for Shiro catching him in time.

“This way!” screamed the hero, over the uproar.

The villain clung to Shiro’s arm, letting himself be dragged out of the river of people. As the Japanese man led them into a gap between two food stalls, a flash caught his attention.

A purple flash.

“Shiro!” Lance shrieked. “Look there!”

The purple flames were spreading on the rails of the roller-coaster, melting the iron like it was candle wax. The explosion had started a fire in several food stalls and wheelhouses, luckily empty, that were burning at great speed.

“ _Quiznak_!” cursed Shiro, eyes wide open and tightening his hand on Lance’s arm, almost painfully.

“Yeah.” he agreed, gulping.

“Call Allura and Keith, they’ll notify the _Galaxy Garrison_ ,” ordered Shiro, taking his own phone and offering it to Lance. The villain grimaced at the name of the institution, but he knew they were the only ones who could control the situation. “Stay here and when people have dispersed, I want you to go back to the main entrance and get out of here.”

“What? And where are you going?”

“I have to help with the evacuation, there’s still people trapped in some attractions.”

“I’ll go with you,” declared Lance, but he was stopped by the hero.

“No.”

“No? What do you mean “no”?” he exclaimed, irritated and trying to free his wrist from Shiro’s grip. “I can help!”

“It’s not safe.”

“I know it’s not safe! I can actually see the flames from here!” yelled Lance, pointing at the purple glow lighting the night above the stalls and parked vehicles. “And, if it wasn’t clear, you’re not my boss and I don’t have to listen to you. Moreover, my villain side is encouraging me to do exactly the opposite of that!”

Shiro let go of his arm, but his worried gaze made Lance stay still.

“ _Blue_ , please.” The hero's tone was almost imploring. “I don’t want anything to happen to you. Go away, stay safe.”

“I can control water. I can help,” insisted Lance. “As _Voltron’s_ leader, as hero of this city, you know that my power is the best to deal with this situation.”

“As Shiro, I don’t like it.”

“ _Ah_ , but Shiro understands it.” Lance backed up a few steps, and the Japanese man didn’t try to stop him. “Don’t worry your pretty heroic head, I’ll be fine. Go help people, I’ll contain the fire.”

“Okay, but if the situation turns too dangerous, promise me that you’ll leave. No heroic stunts.”

“It’s really ironic to ask that of a villain.” And because Lance felt brave, stupid and full of adrenalin; he stood on his tiptoes and kissed the hero’s cheek softly. “See you later, handsome!”

Before Shiro could react and congratulating himself for his triumphant departure (“ _Nailed it!_ ”), the young villain ran off in the opposite direction of the tide of people.

Although Lance had listened to the stories and watched documentaries about the Great Fire, nothing could compare to watching with his own eyes how the fire advanced, destroying everything in its path like a beast.

Nothing could prepare him for the heat of the flames.

Nothing could prepare him for the black smoke, the way his eyes cried and how he felt like he was suffocating as he came closer.

Neither was he prepared for the fear when he stood in front of the inferno.

“ _M-Mama_ didn’t raise cowards.” Lance muttered to himself.

The villain closed his eyes, calling his power.

Even though the carnival was near the ocean, Lance felt like it was too far away, no matter his _Abuela’s*_ words: “The sea will always respond to your call, _pececito*_ ”.

However, the _Love Tunnel_ was closer. Lance hoped it was enough.

The Cuban boy spread his arms and slid his foot across the ground, twisting his body as if in a dance.

A column of water raised from the artificial lake, overturning the wooden boats and breaking the sets.

Lance moved his hands quickly, feeling the pulse of the power under his skin and throwing the water against the roller-coaster, trying to cover all the fire he could with it, as he did with Allura in Shiro’s house.

But they weren’t little flames in the heart of a wound, they were an inferno destroying a machine of iron and wires.

“Come on, come on, come on...” hissed the villain, drops of sweat evaporating over his cheeks. “Go away, you stupid fire.”

A piece of the railing detached itself from the attraction and hit the ground a few meters from Lance.

Lance covered his face with his arms, trying to protect himself from the shower of sparks.

“NO!” howled Lance.

Those few seconds of distraction had made him lose his concentration and the water rained over the villain. Panting, Lance fought to maintain his power and pushed himself to return the water to the flames.

“Come on...” spitted Lance, clenching his teeth. “ _A-Abuela_ didn’t train weak waterbenders...”

But not even his biggest efforts seemed to be enough.

His power quelled the flames for a few seconds but it kept advancing, unstoppable. Too much fire and so little energy in Lance’s body to stop it all.

The attraction kept burning and falling apart.

Lance’s body shook like a leaf, his mind buzzed, his throat burned, and he... couldn’t... breathe.

A coughing fit almost threw him to the floor, but he managed to keep standing on his feet.

And then, a loud squeak resonated over the fire’s uproar.

“No, no, NO!”

The Ferris wheel!

The purple flames had engulfed most of the attraction and several people were still trapped in suspended cabins, more than twenty meters off the ground. Two employees of the fair were pulling at a lever, uselessly trying to make the engine work.

And then there was Shiro, clinging precariously from one of the irons of the attraction, tearing the cabin’s metal door with his mechanical arm.

Through the smoke, Lance saw how the fire reached the axis of the attraction.

He watched as the flames devoured the screws and brackets.

The attraction squeaked, wobbled ...

Fell.

“ **SHIRO**!”

Something exploded inside of Lance and everything seemed to slow down around him.

 _Badum_.

His heartbeat resonating inside his chest.

 _Badum_.

The roaring of the tides reverberating in his ears.

 _Badum_.

The sound of the ocean responding to his call.

Lance extended his hands and felt the pull of the ocean.

The water advanced beyond the cliffs and he didn’t need his eyes to know the water was getting closer.

He felt eternal, he felt powerful. The ocean didn’t have limits and Lance didn’t have them either.

The Cuban boy took a breath and clenched his fists, compelling the water to change its form.

And then everything ended.

Like a rubber band snapping, Lance returned back to his body. It was like a giant trying to fit inside skin several sizes smaller.

He fell on his knees, gripping his chest and panting. When he dared to open his eyes, the vision left him breathless.

The Ferris wheel. Frozen.

The ice covered most of the attraction, except the places where there were still trapped people, and it had stopped its fall, like some kind of vulgar imitation of the _Leaning Tower of Pisa_. However, it wasn’t just the Ferris wheel that was frozen, but also the roller-coaster and several booths... everything the flames had touched.

“Oh, God... What have I done?”

The feeling of somebody watching him made the villain look up and found himself the target of all the incredulous glances of the people trapped... and Shiro’s. At that distance, Lance could not see his face, but the stiffness of the Japanese man’s posture did not indicate joy nor relief.

And then he heard the sounds of sirens getting closer.

“No, no, no... I-I have to go...” gasped Lance, rising on his feet and almost crashing to the ground again, because his legs couldn't stop shaking. “I-I can’t b-be here...”

He ran away.

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

_“They can’t find me; they’ll recognize me... I can’t... I-”_

Lance tumbled for the thousandth time, managing to cling to the brick wall to avoid ending up on the asphalt once again.

He was weak. His body wouldn't stop trembling, his vision blurred and the cuts on his hands, souvenirs from previous falls while running through the _Lower Level_ ’s streets, stung like a _quiznak_.

But fear kept him going.

_“Over there!” shouted a female voice behind them, as Lance wandered the corridors of the prison, dragging his semi-conscious friend Hunk. “Don’t let them escape!”_

_“L-Lance...” muttered Hunk._

_“Do not ask me to leave you here! Don’t you dare! This is not a superhero movie!” hissed Lance. “We’re almost here. Just a little more.”_

_“You c-can’t carry... my weight up there. P-please... the guards will c-catch us both...”_

_“We’ll see about that.”_

 

The GGP knew neither his face nor his name, not a single clue that would have put them on their track. Pidge had taken care of it. Until that night, it had been impossible for them to associate _Blue Wave_ , the petty and showy criminal, with one of the few people who managed to enter the _High Security Prison_ and didn’t leave in a body bag. However, the GGP just needed to look at what happened at the fair and add two and two.

Lance would never be safe in _Altean City_ anymore, probably not even _Altea_. The GGP would never stop looking for him.

_“Just a few more meters, buddy.” begged Lance, tightening his arm on Hunk’s waist, who moved like a puppet without strings. “Just a little more. Okay?”_

_“I’m tired...”_

_“Yes, I know, I know... We’re almost there.” Hunk tripped again, almost throwing them both to the floor. “Please, please, please... We just need to go to reach the access to the sewers and Pidge will get us out the prison.”_

_“Find that monster!” ordered another voice, followed by the sounds of bullets hitting the iron door that Lance had just frozen. “Don’t let them escape!”_

 

Lance remembered the day when they had rescued Hunk from the prison. Lots of guards had called him a monster. They had shouted the worst things when they managed to corner them on the West Wing of the Prison, less than twenty meters from his only way of escape.

What he wasn’t able to remember was what happened after the military’s fingers had caressed the triggers of their weapons. When Lance closed his eyes, he recalled flashes intermingled with ire, fear and desperation. After that, just cold, fatigue, and screams... that time of terror, and the ice.

The ice covering all his eyes could reach: walls, floor, ceiling... but the soldiers were (mostly) intact.

The same ice that coated the Ferris wheel.

 _“This is not something that Pidge’s tricks can fix.”_ thought Lance, taking a shaky breath of air. _“Oh, God, I’m putting them in danger. I’ve put Hunk and Pidge in dan-...”_

A hand came up from the shadows and grabbed his arm.

Lance yelped as he was dragged inside an alley and found himself looking at Shiro’s face. A very furious face, void of all the smiles he had seen on his fake date.

“It’s you.”

“W-what? I’m what?”

“You’re the dangerous villain that assaulted the High Security Prison two years ago.”

“I-I don’t know what are you talking about.” Lance lied, struggling to escape Shiro’s grip, who just tightened his hand. “Let me go!”

“I’m talking about the time when you and your green friend broke into the prison. I’m talking about the time you released several prisoners! Dangerous prisoners! I’m talking about the time you attacked over twenty soldiers and froze a whole wing.”

“I-I’m not dangerous! I-I saved your life! Yours and a lot of people’s!”

Shiro narrowed his eyes, but let Lance get loose when the Cuban boy gave a strong pull.

“Yeah, you’re right. Then, what happened two years ago? Your little break-in ended with dozens of injured people, countless property damage and dangerous villains scampering through the streets of _Altean City_. It took us two weeks to catch _The Poltergeist,_ and by then, he had put over thirty people in the hospital!” Lance took a step back, hitting the wall behind him. He had never heard Shiro scream like that, not even that time they locked him into the bank vault. “For God’s sake! The ice still covers the prison! After two years and despite of the efforts of the Galaxy Garrison, the ice is still there! So tell me, _Blue Wave_ , what were you trying to accomplish then?”

Lance paled.

The villain didn’t know the state which everything was left after escaping through the sewers, but it seemed worse than he thought. His _Abuela_ always said that he was a powerful waterbender, much more powerful than her. He had never believed her, but after that, it was impossible to deny the evidence.

Every time he used his powers, he was afraid of losing control again.

Maybe that’s why he wasn’t so good at controlling large areas of water.

“T-to save my friend’s life,” answered Lance, lowering his eyes. “T-the thing about the criminals was an accident... I-I didn’t mean to...”

“You’re nice, you’re kind, and you’ve never hurt anyone during your... games, your robberies,” interrupted the hero, in a cold tone. “So I allowed myself to forget that you’re a villain. A dangerous villain. I should...”

“You should what? Lock me up? Drag me to the deepest cell of the _High Security Prison_ and throw away the key?” exclaimed Lance, feeling the fury growing inside of him. “Maybe you should tie me to an electrified chair. O-or try to drown me in a bathtub, that would be poetic. No, wait! Maybe you should deprive me of water and lock me into a cell so hot that I’ll think my face is gonna melt! I think that’s the protocol for people who control water! Or just put me on a room so dark and silent that I’ll lose my mind and forget who I am! _Hmm_? That would be a suitable punishment for a criminal like me?”

“The Garrison would never do that! The criminals locked in that prison are the worst of the worst, but they are also human beings! It’s true their methods are harsh, but...”

“Harsh? _HARSH_?” exploded Lance. “Open your eyes, Shiro! Look beyond the stupid monthly forms they give you about the prison! What I’m saying is exactly what happens inside the walls of the prison!”

“You’re lying! The Garrison was created to protect the city and its people! You’re talking about torture!”

“Yes, I’m talking about torture! That’s exactly what I’m talking about! Human rights don’t exist inside those walls! I’m saying that people die in there!”

Lance closed his eyes, trying to calm himself down.

That was the everyday in the _Lower Level_. If somebody was taken to that prison, the neighbors put candles in front of their door, because they all knew that they probably wouldn’t come back. Or if they did, they’d never be the same.

But those were just rumors in the _Middle Level_ and were unthinkable in the _Upper Level_.

“Shiro, I’d never lie about something like this.”

“You’re a villain. That’s what you do,” the hero talked back, but he didn’t seem so convinced.

“You know there are lines I wouldn’t cross.”

“I know?” Shiro let out a slightly hysterical laugh. “I don’t know you! They saved my life. _Blue_ , for God’s sake, they saved my life!”

“Your months in captivity. When they tortured you in _Daibazaal_.” realized Lance, feeling a prick of guilt gazing at the hero’s lost look. “B-but, Shiro... they... they are now doing the same thing to other people!”

“Don’t.” Shiro cut him, with a voice so cold that the next words died in Lance’s mouth. “Don’t you dare... Don’t you dare to use that to manipulate me. You have no idea what happened there. Don’t even think about using that against me!”

“Okay, okay! I’m sorry! I’m really sorry... I’m not... I’m sorry. I won’t talk about it,” apologized the Cuban boy. “B-but that doesn’t change that it’s true what I’m saying. I’ve seen it! I saw it that night, when I broke into the prison to rescue _Yellow_!”

“ _Yellow_?”

“Yes, Yellow, the big guy that cooked those delicious pancakes on our kitchen. The one who filled your fridge with food because he didn’t trust your cook to feed you properly. The one that forced _Glinch_ to give you back your videogame. My best friend, my brother... one of the kindest people in the universe.” Lance closed his eyes, trying to keep the images of Hunk locked up in that tiny cell out of his head. “You know? He never wanted to be a villain, his dream was to be a chef. The only reason he became one was because of _Glinch_ and me. We were going to do it and he just followed us, because he wanted to protect us.” The boy clenched his fists and fixed his eyes on Shiro’s. “Did he deserve that? Did he deserve to spend a week locked up in that place, next to the most dangerous murderers and villains in this world?”

The Japanese man opened his mouth to say something, but Lance didn’t let him.

“ _Yellow_ hasn’t told me anything. Even two years later, he’s still too scared to talk about it!” Lance laughed, bitterly, as he felt the tears accumulate behind his eyes. “But I know what happened. I’ve seen the scars under his clothes. I’ve witnessed panic attacks over the simplest things. A bare wire? The darkness? Why do you think that every corner in our base is illuminated?” He ran his hands over his face, panting and unable to hold Shiro’s gaze. “ _Glinch_ and I have done what we could, but he’s not fine. Hunk is not fine... and I don’t know how to fix this.”

Shiro’s legs appeared in his field of vision and Lance watched through the hair of his bangs the hero’s aborted movement, as if to place a hand over his shoulder.

“This is not justice, Shiro. This is torture.”

“My father would never allow something like this.”

Lance almost jumped, surprised by Allura’s voice.

The Cuban boy turned around to the alley’s entry, wanting to face her, scream how wrong she was... but then he saw the paleness of Allura’s face and the way she clenched her fists, and all fight left his body.

She, more than anyone, needed to believe in something like that.

“Your father has more important things to worry about.” mumbled Lance, thinking about the rumors of Alfor being sick. Although the villain liked gossiping, he knew better than to believe everything. Alfor still went to the Council’s meetings and made public appearances, so he didn’t know if it was true, but he did know that picking a fight with Allura wouldn’t lead him anywhere. “Look, guys, if you don’t believe me, dig a little. What the GG is doing, it’s not even a secret. They don’t even bother to hide it, after all, they’re basically the masters of the city.”

Suddenly, Lance felt really tired, physically and emotionally drained. He just wanted the night to end. The boy blinked, trying to contain the tears. It was a pity he couldn’t use his powers to avoid crying.

“It’s been fun, but I think we should end this thing with the dates. You know, with the best date of all... finishing in style,” announced Lance, trying to gather enough energy to smile. “The effect of the _Love Ray_ has to be about to disappear. It’s strange that it hasn’t yet.” The villain pretended to adjust his mask to dry his tears. “Now I have to go. If you have recognized me, I’m pretty sure that the GG will make the same connection soon. I don’t want to end up in one of the cells we were talking about.”

“ _Blue_...” tried to call Shiro.

“Unless you’re planning to arrest me here and now. After all, our agreement has just ended.”

“Maybe it would be for the best that you leave before the GGP arrives,” said Allura, as Keith placed a hand on Shiro’s shoulder to stop his advance. “But about the dates...”

“We’ll look into the thing with the GG,” interrupted Keith, receiving the surprised looks of everyone in the alley. “You don’t trust the GG either, Allura. There’s nothing wrong in investigating them. If _Blue_ is lying, we’ll find out.”

“And if he’s telling the truth...” Allura fell silent, looking at the ground with troubled expression.

Taking advantage that they were distracted, Lance backed down a few steps into the shadows.

“ _Lan_ -Blue! Wait!” shouted Shiro, when he saw the villain leaving.

“It’s been a great date. Better than any other on the rooftops of the city.” said Lance, attempting to joke. “Although I do love our cat and mouse game. _Hasta la_ later, heroes!”

For a moment, it seemed like Shiro was going to run after him, but Keith stopped him again, shaking his head. It seemed that the red hero understood the need for a conversation to end. Lance thanked mentally the gesture, because he didn’t know what would happen if Shiro asked him to stay.

Who knows, maybe in another life Keith and him would have been best friends. After Hunk and Pidge, of course.

Using his knowledge of the streets he knew better than the heroes, Lance disappear in the night once more. He forced himself to believe than the coldness he felt inside his chest was due to the fall’s wind and not because of how bad one of the best days of his life had ended.

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

Lance had been limping pathetically on the stone paths of _Altean Central Park_ when he felt a pair of eyes observing him from the shadows.

And it wasn’t one of the park rangers.

When one of the GG’s patrols had passed too close from where Lance had been hiding, he had decided to cross the park. At this hour, with its doors closed to the public, he only risked being caught by its Rangers, which would be easier to avoid than the GG soldiers combing every street of the _Lower Level_.

But it also meant using the longest route and Lance’s whole body was protesting. The horrible conversation with the heroes had distracted him for a few minutes, but in that moment he was completely exhausted. His whole body was covered in cold sweat, his legs trembled and his lungs hurt like he had been breathing underwater.

So when he found himself all alone in one of the most isolated places of _Altean City_ with somebody following him, Lance knew he had made a mistake.

“He-hello?” asked Lance, trying to convince himself that the darkness was making him paranoid.

The snap of a branch. A rapid movement on the corner of his eye. Rustle of bushes.

No, it wasn’t his imagination.

“I know you’re there!” screamed the Cuban boy, trying to look more confident than he was feeling. “Show yourself, you coward!”

Silence.

And then two figures emerged from the line of trees behind him and another one walked along the cobbled path, keeping away from the light of the street lamps.

He was surrounded.

“If you’re looking for money, you’re gonna be disappointed, fellas.”

They weren’t GGP, too silent, too sly. They wouldn’t be making an ambush; they would have jumped on his prey the same moment it was in their reach.

“We are not after your money.”

Lance tensed when hearing the soft and controlled voice from the hooded figure before him. It sounded almost offended by the comparison with a simple thug.

The villain knew there was a fountain a few meters away, but he was so spent after his stunt on the carnival that he didn’t know if he would be able to move a single drop of water, let alone fight against three people. Running was out of question, because they would hunt him before he took a couple of steps.

But if they thought Lance McClain was going to fall without a fight, they were gonna be disappointed.

“We are not going to hurt you,” continued the person, advancing until he was under the light of the streetlight. “We just want to talk.”

Slow, like not wanting to startle Lance, they took off the hood.

He was quite taller than Lance and wore heavy black armor, without any distinctive markings. Long white hair, purple skin, piercing violet eyes and pointed ears. Very attractive. If Lance had not been completely terrified, he probably would have had at least ten different pick-up lines ready.

“My name is Lotor. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, _Blue Wave_.”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **WARNINGS** : talk about torture, but nothing graphic.
> 
> _*Amigo mío_ : my friend.  
>  _*Abuela_ : Grandmother.  
>  _*Pececito_ : Little fish.
> 
>  
> 
> Ops? My hand slipped?
> 
> This was supposed to be just a fluffy chapter, but somehow some wild angst appear and... well... you've read it. Is it too late to say I'm not really good at writting too-fluffy-things-with-not-angst? And I prefer my fluff with weird humor. I hope you still found it romantic! :D  
> When I started my fic, even though I warned I was gonna make my chapters suffer, I don't know if you imagined this.
> 
> Aaaanddd... plot advances! Lotor has appeared! Like nogurt-p wanted! *wink wink* Annnnddd... That's good or bad?  
> This story was conceived before seasons 5 and 6, so I have my own take on Lotor character. Probably it's closer to season 4 Lotor. But I can't say more without giving spoilers, so you'll have to wait!
> 
> I'm sorry if you like the teletubbies, I wasn't never really fond of them. And I also didn't like the movie Shark Tale, but the name seemed appropiate for the shark plush... which I guess now it's lost in the chaos of the carnival. 
> 
> Also sorry Hunk and Pidge almost weren't in this chapter, but they'll be back next chapter.
> 
> I'm gonna have a really busy couple of months (when I say 0 time to writte, I say 0 time to writte... dammit, real life), so I have no idea when I'll have the next chapter ready. Sorry in advance and thank you for your patience! 
> 
> Hugs to everyone!


	5. When Things Go Wrong, You Have to Keep Going… And Pray It Doesn’t Get Worse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First of all, here it is the next chapter! It took me a lot of editing and changing until I was satisfied with this chapter, so I hope you like it.  
> I'm really sorry for the delay. I'm really busy these months and I'm only able to write on the weekends! Also, Lotor is a pain in my ass to be written. That scene took me weeks to write!!  
> As I said, I haven't seen the last seasons of Voltron (6 and 7), so Lotor's characterizacion is more alike to seasons 3 and 4, because I started writting this story before season 5. And probably things there are things that clashes with things said in those two last seasons, but just bear with me!
> 
> A big thank you for my beta [exo_moon](https://archiveofourown.org/users/exo_moon/pseuds/exo_moon) for fixing all my gramatical mistakes of the chapter.
> 
> Enjoy!

**_Chapter 5 – When Things Go Wrong, You Have to Keep Going… And Pray It Doesn’t Get Worse._ **

 

 _“All the children say:_  
_We don't need another hero,_  
_We don't need to know the way home_  
_All we want is life beyond the Thunderdome.”_

_“ **Tina Turner** – We Don’t Need Another Hero”._

 

Lance raised his hands, but before he could call his power, he found himself with the barrel of a gun against the back of his neck.

“Don’t even think about it,” warned a feminine voice, a promise that his brains would be scattered on the floor if he dared to move.

“Leave him, Acxa,” ordered Lotor, who didn’t seem surprised nor bothered by the villain’s reaction. “ _Blue_ won’t try again, he’s more intelligent than that, right?”

The Cuban boy gulped and nodded, lowering his arms. It wasn’t like he had enough energy on his body to put off a real fight.

The weapon stayed for a few seconds and then it was removed.

“As I said, I just want to talk.”

“Right, _L-Legolas_. You wanna talk? Let’s talk,” hissed Lance, trying to look more brave than he felt as he dried the sweat of his hands on his jeans. “What the heck do you want? It must be important, if you have assaulted me in the middle of a park at midnight.”

“Despite your flashy appearances, you’re a difficult man to find,” replied the Galra, not batting an eye before Lance’s rude tone. “I’ve been wanting to contact you for a while, but the closest I’ve been was when my men met you at the _Lower Level_.”

“Yeah, well, with the GGP trying to put my ass into prison, I prefer for my address not to appear in the… wait a minute, _YOUR_ men?” screamed Lance, his voice pinching higher than a soprano. “Do you mean _Rat Face_ and his merry band?”

“ _Rat_ …? _Oh_ , I guess it’s fitting. His features really did resemble those of a rodent.”

But Lance wasn’t listening to Lotor’s words, his mind too busy processing the last weeks’ incidents. The disappearances. Allura and Keith fighting with the hooded people of the docks. Allura’s weird wounds. The Purple Flames. _Rat Face’s_ murder…

In what kind of mess has he gotten himself into?

“You killed _Rat Face_. He was working for you and you killed him,” gasped the Cuban boy, backing up a few steps. “You’re responsible for all the missing persons in _Altea_. You’re kidnapping them! You… you… you broke our cameras at the docks! I don’t know what you’re plotting, but you’re not gonna get away with it!”

“How dramatic,” huffed Lotor, who seemed too dignified to roll his eyes, but the tone of his voice spoke for himself. “I haven’t kidnapped anyone. Each one of them came with me voluntarily. It was their decision and it’s not my business who they decided to say goodbye to.”

“Right, and I guess that _Rat Face’s_ murder was an unfortunate incident,” spat Lance, furious at Lotor’s condescending behavior. “I’m not going to stay here and listen…”

“Acxa, Narti.”

Before he could move, the women got in his way.

The blue-skinned-and-haired one had her hand over the gun’s sheath and sent Lance a cold glare, like the situation was all his fault. The other person—who seemed to be some kind of blue reptile—didn’t have eyes, but Lance still felt like she was scrutinizing his soul.

Lance shivered, and he wasn’t so naïve to believe it was because of the cold.

“I don’t enjoy killing, _Blue_ ,” said Lotor, getting closer to Lance. “But I don’t waver to do it if it’s necessary. That man betrayed us to Sendak and several people died for that. It would have been more if we hadn’t stopped him,” The Galra smiled sardonically and added: “And about the cameras… we preferred not to have witnesses to our encounters. If that’s what bothers you, we’ll pay for the damages.”

 _“Who’s Sendak?”_ Lance wondered, but not daring to ask. He wasn’t reassured at all by the words _kill by necessity_ , he didn’t know if at any moment, it would be _necessary_ to end his life.

“W-why would they w-want to go with you?” The Cuban boy questioned instead, looking slyly to the line of trees in case an escape route had opened miraculously.

“Because _Daibazaal_ has much more to offer them than this city.”

“ _Daib_ -? Holy _quiznak_ , you’re Lotor, the _Bastard of Daibazaal_!”

A flash of fury appeared in the Galra’s eyes.

Lance braced himself, waiting for the punch than didn’t come.

For a few seconds, nothing happened besides the raging hisses at his back. He watched Lotor unclench his fists and adopt a carefully constructed blank expression.

The villain released the air he didn’t realize he was holding.

Lotor, the Bastard of Daibazaal.

Everybody knew the story of how Emperor Zarkon had disowned his only child when he discovered he wasn’t a _Gifted_ , a few months before he attacked _Altea_. It stopped being important after Zarkon’s death, because that left a vacuum of power on the country and a civil war between the different governors for the throne of _Daibazaal_ started. When the war ended ten years later and the _Council_ was founded, Lotor had managed to gain a position of power in it, despite his youth and lack of powers.

People said that Lotor was sly and ambitious, and Lance didn’t doubt it, because having Zarkon’s blood in your veins only took you part of the way, even though there were still members of Zarkon’s reign in the _Council_. And keeping your position for ninety years? No, Lotor was not someone to be underestimated.

Or at least it had been like that until eight years ago, when _Daibazaal_ closed the borders between the two islands. No ship could cross the strait that separated the north of _Altea_ and the south of _Daibazaal_ , so only rumors reached _Altea City._

And according those rumors, things had changed in those eight years. Lotor’s presence in _Altea_ was enough to confirm it.

“A-and what do you offer them?” blurted Lance, trying desperately to change subject. If he did not want his corpse to accompany _Rat Face’s_ in the morgue, it was best not to provoke the Galra.

“What do I offer them?” Lotor arched his eyebrow, maybe amused by the absurdity of the question. “Safety, position, respect… whatever they need. But apparently, what the inhabitants of this city want most, is a place where they don’t have to look behind their backs at every step they take, where they can be who they are without the fear of the Garrison capturing them.” The Galra waved his hand, as if signaling an imaginary treat, and the movement shook his cloak, showing a purple glint under it. “I don’t need to kidnap or coerce anybody, I just have to offer them a new life far away from this city.”

“And the people from the other levels?” questioned the Cuban boy, remembering the disappearances that Allura mentioned.

“The people from the _Lower Level_ aren’t the only ones unhappy with _Altea_ , but they are the most desperate to leave it,” answered Lotor. “The golden age of the heroes and his justice ideals ended the moment this city gave power to the Galaxy Garrison. _Altean city_ is a sinking boat and people are starting to realize that.”

Lance opened his mouth, wanting to rebate Lotor’s words, but after a few seconds of silence, he closed it again.

The blue villain had grown up listening to stories of the city of superheroes and his dream had been going to the _GGHS_ to become one of them, but when he arrived to _Altea City_ , he found a different reality. After all these years trying to justify how the city treated him and his friends, Lance knew that deep down, Lotor was right.

“And this offering is out of the goodness of your heart.”

“I have my reasons.”

“Yeah, I’m sure of that,” mumbled Lance, regarding the Galra with distrust.

“And now, I’m giving you the chance.”

 _“What?”_ Lance raised his head and looked at the Galra, incredulous.

Lotor had his amused expression again, like if Lance was a pet doing something dumb and funny that you can’t help but smile… but less pleasant.

“Come with me to _Daibazaal_. You and your friends,” Lotor added when he saw the doubt in Lance’s face. “ _The Evil Trio_. I have seen you in the news. Despite your flamboyant and less than orthodox plans, surprisingly, they work. You’d do good in _Daibazaal_.”

Lance narrowed his eyes.

Part of him screamed to consider the offer, the same part who was terrified of what the GG would do to him if he was captured, but Lance was aware that he could not trust Lotor and his carefully chosen words. He knew nothing about what was happening in _Daibazaal_ in these past years nor did he know Lotor’s motivations. He didn’t seem the kind of person who gave things away without first having considered the benefits it brought. What did Lotor gain from all this?

And then there was the other thing…

Lance’s eyes were attracted once more to Lotor’s cloak, under which the villain had seen the purple flash.

“Why?” The Cuban boy glared at the Galra. “Why do you want us to come with you? What do you get out of all this? I’m not stupid, I know something is happening… something has been going on for a long time. _Daibazaal_ has not made contact with _Altea_ in eight years and now here you come with your promises of a better world. What’s going on?”

“You don’t think this could be a genuine offering?” Lotor replied, with that amused tone that made Lance’s blood boil.

“I don’t make it a habit to trust somebody who kills other people in cold blood,” fumed Lance. “Especially when that person hides the now-dead-one to kidnap.”

“My influences in _Altea_ are limited and I chose to trust the wrong person. He left me no other choice.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, so you’ve told me. _Rat Face_ betrayed you and tried to turn you over to Sendak. And who the heck is _Sendak_?” snapped the Cuban boy. “If you want me to listen or even consider your offer, you better start talking. Stop deflecting!”

A blow of wind shook the branches of the trees on the wayside, while the silence drowned the echoes of Lance’s voice. Lotor’s smile had disappeared, and in the darkness of the park, his eyes seemed to shine almost supernaturally. They stared at Lance, considering his next words.

“Sendak is one of the generals of _Daibazaal_ ,” Lotor answered at last, when the prolonged silence started to make Lance nervous.

“Where you supposedly have so much influence? Aren’t you a member of the _Council_ or his prince or something like that? Why would they want to kill you?”

“There’s another power struggle in _Daibazaal_ and I am the leader of the party that opposes Zarkon’s Witch and his general, Sendak,” Although Lotor explained it with dispassionate calm, Lance was able to hear his hatred of saying their names. “I am an important piece in this war and they are trying to get me out of the way.”

“That’s why you came to _Altea_. You’re recruiting people… You’re recruiting _Gifted_ for your war!” screamed Lance, realization dawning on him.

“As I said before, I haven’t tricked anyone. Each one of them accepted full well knowing what they were exposing themselves to.” Lotor shot an irritated look at Lance. “And it’s not just my war. If Haggar consolidates her power in _Daibazaal_ , it will become a problem for _Altea_ and the whole world. Or are you so naïve to think that she will limit herself to _Daibazaal_?”

A chill ran down Lance’s back.                 

Haggar, the witch. The advisor. Zarkon’s shadow. The voice who whispered from the shadows. Bearer of powers that escaped people’s imagination. Who had disappeared into the purple flames after Zarkon’s death and had become a name that people feared to pronounce aloud.

Lance had been told lots of horror stories about the Witch, many of which were probably lies, attempts from his parents to make him eat his vegetables or his brother Marco to scare him.

It seemed that they were no longer just stories, and the possibility of Lotor telling the truth scared Lance.

“The Witch no longer fears frontiers or cares about discretion, as you saw at the Carnival.” Lotor’s voice caught his attention again. “Which means that she’s close to reaching her goal. We all are in danger.”

“She’s here? The Witch started that fire?” Lance gasped, paling.

The Galra looked at Lance like he was stupid.

“Haggar is in _Daibazaal_ , she wouldn’t risk herself coming to _Altea_ until she’s sure of her victory.”

“So… Sendak started the fire,” mumbled Lance, slipping his eyes once more towards Lotor’s black cloak, trying to catch again that purple shining, “Or you.”

“Haven’t you heard? The bastard of _Daibazaal_ has no powers.”

“Maybe,” hummed Lance, before pointing at Lotor’s waist, “But then, what’s that?”

“Science. Nothing you have to worry about,” dismissed Lotor, adjusting the cloak and keeping whatever it was hidden. “This war goes beyond you and me. We have to stop the Witch before it’s too late. Come with us to _Daibazaal_ , help us defeat her.”

The blue villain looked at his back, where Lotor’s two companions were no longer present. He wasn’t sure at which point in the conversation they had disappeared to explore the terrain or whatever deadly assassins like them do, but only a shadowy path stretched between the dark silhouettes of the trees, losing itself in the soft mist.

Lance burrowed inside his jacket, shuddering, though it wasn’t because of the drop in temperature. His legs had stopped trembling and his mind felt clearer, so he was sure that the purple light he had seen was the same flames.

And Lotor hadn’t exactly denied it.

Hunk and Pidge had told him that in theory it was possible to replicate powers with certain devices. Lance had seen some crude attempts in the GG labs. But Zarkon’s flames? That was whole new level of fucked up.

“Science? Science that recreates Zarkon’s flames? Murders? A killer on your heels? A war against a witch?” snapped Lance, hugging himself and narrowing his eyes. “I don’t even know if I believe you, but I’m gonna have to decline your offer. Thanks but no thanks.”

“Do you think you can run away from this? You’re already involved,” voiced Lotor, his expression hardening. “After what happened at the carnival, you’re not only in the GGP’s radar, but also Sendak’s. He will come after you and kill you.”

“Why would he want to kill me? I’m not a threat to him!”

“Aren’t you? Didn’t you use your powers to freeze a Ferris Wheel and turn off the fire?” taunted Lotor. “Don’t be naïve. You’re one of the few waterbenders who can turn off the purple flames. At this moment, the only one still alive.”

_“What?”_

“This?” The Galra reached under his cloak and showed Lance a sword of a black handle and purple trimmings, with a holster in the same style. The part of the blade that the case didn’t cover, just a few centimeters under the handle, glowed almost threateningly In a soft purple light, casting shadows on Lotor’s face. “This is not the only weapon capable of replicating Zarkon’s flames, but it is the only one that’s not in the hands of the Witch. The appearance of a powerful waterbender, capable of extinguishing its fire, endangers her plan. They’re going to go after you, _Blue_.”

Lance flinched like he had been hit.

The villain’s head reeked with new information and his brain seemed unable to process everything at once. He still wasn’t sure if he believed Lotor, but he knew the threat was real.

Why was all this happening to him? He was just a boy from Cuba, a failed hero turned villain, a person who lied to his family because he was too ashamed to admit the truth.

Why him?

“Come with us. We can protect you,” continued the Galra, not commenting how Lance’s hands had started to tremble again. “I didn’t force anyone to come with me and I won’t do that with you either, but you know it’s the best option. You will be safer with us, away from this city.”

“You’re trying to use me. You also need me.”

“Maybe, but right now I’m the least of your problems.”

“ _Blue_ , close your eyes!”

“ _Pidge_?”

Before Lance could react, something fell between Lotor and him, seconds after it exploded in a flash of light that blinded him.

 _“A flashbang!”_ the villain screamed, internally.

Lance stumbled as he rubbed his eyes frantically, while thousands of little dots danced behind his eyelids. His feet slipped on something and he fell, landing on two muscled arms that crushed him against a chest he knew very well.

“Hunk!” cried out Lance, relief running through his body and clinging to his friend as they walked away from the Galra.

Blinking rapidly and waiting for his eyes to adjust again, Lance saw the green blur of Pidge come between the black blur of Lotor and him.

“Back off!” shouted Pidge, pointing at him what was probably her modified Taser, which was a few volts away from becoming a lightsaber. “Don’t you dare move a muscle or I’ll fry you!”

“Oh, _Blue_! We were so worried! We saw what happened on the carnival and we feared the worst!” babbled Hunk, on the verge of tears. “We guessed you’d use the route of-”

Lance hugged his friend, inhaling the sweet smell of cinnamon and feeling safe for the first time that whole night. Then he heard the sound of branches shaking and bushes being crushed under heavy boots.

The Cuban boy jumped out of Hunk’s protective arms.

“Wait!” shouted Lance, stopping in the middle of the path and cutting off two furious bodyguards emerging from the shadows with homicidal intentions. “They’re my friends! They don’t-!

 _“-wanna hurt anybody.”_ A tail circled his throat and cut the words from Lance’s mouth, along with his air supply.

The villain’s feet left the floor, as he struggled and clawed at Narti’s tail. Before she could crush his neck or Pidge electrocuted somebody, Lotor intervened.

 “Stop,” ordered the Galra, with the authority of someone who expected to be obeyed. “Let him go, Narti. We said we only came to talk and that’s how it will be. I’m sure they don’t want to do something stupid.”

Lance was dropped to the ground, gasping for air.

Hunk and Pidge kneeled beside him, glaring at the Galra. They all knew that they weren’t prepared enough to fight against three trained soldiers in fair combat.

“I must say that was a surprise,” commented Lotor, who was rubbing his eyes as the last effects of the flashbang disappeared.

“Not every day a Galra prince deigns to walk the streets of _Altea_ ,” spat Pidge.

Acxa and Narti, who had placed themselves on either side of Lotor, tensed their bodies as if waiting on an attack from the girl. Lance had rarely seen her so furious and he didn’t put it past her, so he grasped Pidge’s wrist.

“Oh?” hummed Lotor, looking with renewed curiosity at the green villain. “I think I haven’t had the pleasure.”

“You were my father’s guide on his way to _Daibazaal’s_ capital.”

“ _Daibazaal’s..._?” wondered Lance.

Then he remembered.

 _Daibazaal_. The diplomatic mission of Doctor Holt and Shiro to _Daibazaal_ eight years ago. Doctor Holt’s last mission...and Shiro’s… at least as a member of the GGP.

“You father? Oh, you must be Doctor Holt’s son. Matt? Or maybe his daughter… Katie.” Lotor’s smile widened, but it wasn’t a nice expression. “The good doctor used to send messages to his family every night while we were on the road. I guess I should be flattered that he included me in them.”

“You, son of a _Weblum_!” screamed Pidge. Lance and Hunk tightened his grip on her arms. “You tortured him!”

“It wasn’t me nor any of my men. I just escorted him and his rude black haired companion to the city, as I was asked,” replied Lotor, indifferent to the poison in the girl’s voice. “I had nothing to do with what happened to them.”

What happened to them.

Captured by the Galra. Tortured. Jailed. Lost for weeks until the _Galaxy Garrison_ rescued them.

The mission that ended with Holt in a coma.

The mission in which Shiro gained a mechanical arm, a tuft of white hair, a whole new set of scars and… a huge blank void in his memory, along with a lot of nightmares.

Lance closed his eyes, remembering the vulnerable and traumatized man he found cowered in the floor of the observatory, six years ago.

“We must go,” announced Acxa, talking for the first time since she pointed the gun to Lance. “We have stayed here for too long. They are probably on their way.”

“Think of my offer, _Blue_. If they are what’s retaining you in this city, they can join us. You know you can’t stay here, lest they find you. Either the Garrison or Sendak.”

“Go where?” asked Hunk, alternating his gaze between Lotor and his friend. “And who is Sendak?”

“He wants us to go with him to _Daibazaal_.”

“Do not trust him! Whatever he told you, he's lying!" exclaimed Pidge, grabbing Lance's hand as if the Galra was going to drag him out of that park. "Lotor has nothing! He is a fugitive! He had to flee from _Daibazaal_ eight years ago and I bet he’s not regained his position!" The girl narrowed her eyes Lotor. "In my father’s last transmission, he told me all about it. He's trying to trick you. Lotor has nothing left.”

"I may be exiled, but I still have resources," argued Lotor, coldly. "What do you need, _Blue_? Money for your little shelter? Or maybe… information?" The Galra let his words sink in. "Information about what really happened eight years ago with Doctor Holt and his escort? Who tortured him? Or maybe about the GG’s negotiations with _Daibazaal_?"

Lance and his friends froze, looking at Lotor with wide eyes. What was he saying?

"The _Blade_ is here," announced Acxa, pulling up her hood and holstering the gun.

"Who?"

"We have to go. Now."

"Wait! What did you mean by that?" shouted Pidge, who would have run after Lotor, if Hunk and Lance hadn’t hold her down. "What do you know about my father?"

"Think carefully about my offer, _Blue_ , because things are going to get very ugly. Believe me, the GGP soon will be the least of your problems."

Lotor put on his cloak and ran through the tree line, vanishing into the shadows as silently as he had come.

"They said someone is coming," whispered Hunk, looking nervously over his shoulder.

“I don’t think…”

Hunk grabbed his friends and dragged them out of the path, urging them to crawl under the roots of a huge oak tree. The Cuban boy almost brained himself against the tree when he tried to move out of the way of Pidge’s elbows.

Lance was tired and wanted to go home, but everything had gone to shit all in one night, so he did as he was told and lay between his friends on the grass, using the darkness and the tall bushes as a cover.

After a few seconds of silence, the blue villain opened his mouth to announce that maybe they had made a mistake, but Pidge covered his mouth with her hand.

Several shadows emerged from the night without disrupting the false sense of calmness of the park, their armor glinting briefly under the full moon. They stopped at the edge of the path, out of reach of the lights of the street lamps.

Three people.

Two of them were huge and muscular, no doubt capable of crushing a skull between their bare hands. The other one, though, must have been the same size as Lance, and looked tiny next to his two companions. However, it didn’t make them less threatening.

All three were dressed in black armor with four luminous lines of purple on their chests and their heads were covered by a hood. They moved with the same fluidity as the shadows, scrutinizing the line of trees as if they were looking for something or ... someone.

The shortest of them suddenly turned around to the place where the three friends huddled.

 _“No, no, no, no…”_ begged Lance, internally.

Even with that strange black mask with luminous lines and points, Lance could almost feel their eyes scanning the darkness.

_“Go away, go away, go away…”_

Pidge clung to her Taser tightly.

They took a step forward. Then another. And then another.

The three villains held their breath.

Lance felt Hunk's body tense behind him and ...

“That way,” announced the one who seemed to be the leader, in a profound voice, halting their advance.

And then, without looking back once, the masked people ran and disappear as quickly as they had arrived.

“What the _quiznack_ is going on?” exclaimed Hunk, breaking the silence.

 

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

**_BLUE WAVE, HERO OR THREAT?_ **

"Threat? The only threats in this city are the journalists. I saved their lives, I'm a hero!" grumbled Lance, crossing his arms as he contemplated the article that Pidge showed him on his laptop. Then he groaned, "Oh, God, I'm a hero."

"This is serious, Lance," hissed Pidge, looking around suspiciously, in case any of the other customers of the coffee shop were listening. However, the place was almost empty and the villains had chosen the farthest table, in a small corner by the window, and no one looked up from what they were doing. "They identified your villainous alter ego in civilian clothes. The GGP has the phones of the people who were there, with videos of what happened at the carnival. These videos are even on YouTube. What if they have one with enough quality to identify Lance McClain?" The girl took off her glasses, rubbing her eyes. "The GGP is on high alert and I can't hack into their servers to delete the videos without them noticing. One wrong step and we will have the military all over our asses."

“Don’t worry, _Pidgeon_ , the GGP wouldn’t be able to find their own asses even if they used both hands. It just means that _Blue Wave_ will have to disappear from the stage for a while, despite the disappointment it will cause to all his fans."

"At least people speak well of you," commented Hunk, reading the article while petting _Harper_ , who was dozing in the boy's lap. "This mother talks about how you saved her children on the Ferris wheel."

"None of that will matter when the GGP gets their hands on Lance and sends him to the deepest hole in the Maximum Security Prison," hissed the green villain, grabbing her coffee mug and taking a loud sip.

Lance and Pidge didn’t miss how Hunk clenched his own mug with more force than necessary. _Harper_ whimpered when the boy’s hands stopped over his fur, until he resumed his caresses.

“Guys, I appreciate your concern, but I’m fine,” Lance tried to reassure them. “You don’t need to accompany me every time I go out.”

His friends just looked at him, not believing a word he was saying. Too many years of friendship.

Pidge and Hunk seemed convinced that the GGP was lurking around every corner to arrest Lance, or that Lotor would emerge from the shadows to kidnap him, so they came to the coffee shop every afternoon after they finished their jobs. Despite all the jokes about the GGP’s incompetence and his complaints, it worried Lance too and he was grateful for his friends’ presence. The only times he had left the _Evil Lair_ in the last five days was to go to work in Rolo and Nyma’s coffee shop, and it had been with reluctance. However, they needed the money, especially now that they weren't going to be able to go out with their villain’s identities and steal things to help their income. Furthermore, it had been hard to convince Rolo to give him a job. The only reason he was successful was because the two ex-villains owed him a favor.

The city had been slowly plunging into chaos since the events of the carnival: the GGP had opened an investigation about what happened, and heroes and GGP soldiers patrolled the main streets of the city, while people scampered nervously through, fearing to be victims of the next attack. It only got worse since the news of the purple fire was leaked. The only ones who seemed to be enjoying the situation were the vultures of the press.

And then there was Lotor's proposal, which he had not managed to stop thinking about.

At least Lance knew he was telling the truth about not kidnapping people, because when he asked Mrs. Lloyd about the disappearance of her son, she gushed all about how he had contacted her about the new job he had been offered: _"In Daibazaal! He told me that when he’s fully installed, I can move in with him! I thought that I would live and die in Altea, but this city is not what it was. I feel so happy that he has found an opportunity elsewhere."_

Lance didn’t have the heart to tell her that the new job was getting involved in an hypothetical future war.

So what? Even if Lotor hadn’t lied about one thing, Lance still couldn’t trust him, especially after he had admitted that he wanted to use him for his powers. It all seemed so surreal: the war, the witch, the assassins, weapons capable of creating purple flames ... Or maybe Lance didn’t want to think about what would happen if Lotor had really told the truth, that the GGP wasn’t the only thing he had to worry about, but also Sendak and the witch Haggar.

With those thoughts in his mind, and feigning carelessness so he wouldn’t worry his friends as he tried not to flinch every time a shadow moved behind him or he saw the gray uniform of the GGP, was taking its toll on Lance. He had barely slept in the last few days and not even his beauty routine was able to cover the dark circles under his eyes. The first thing Rolo had said when he saw him that morning had been: "You look like shit".

Perhaps that was why Rolo had not made any comments when his break lasted several minutes longer than it should've or why he had pretended to believe the excuse that _Harper_ was sick when Hunk came in with the monkey-lizard in his arms and ordered chocolate with marshmallows.

"You’d do the same if we were the ones in danger," declared Hunk, which cut off any argument Lance might have. "We're not going to leave you alone while the GGP and that creeper are out there."

"Thank you, guys," mumbled Lance, with a distracted smile, as he watched the rain fall against the window.

Normally the rain had a relaxing effect on Lance. However, after all that had been happening, the succession of gray days did nothing but contribute to giving a cold and inhuman appearance to the city.

"Yeah, we love you too," intervened Pidge, with fake indifference. "Let's talk about something that aren’t Galra princes, mysterious hooded men, Shiro and ... Oh, come on, Lance, stop sulking."

"I'm not sulking."

“Yes, you are,” chirped Hunk.

"Look, Lance, Shiro was ... he's Matt's best friend and I got to know him well," said Pidge, softening his tone. "He has a great sense of justice and, in theory, the GG belongs to that “justice”. We ... do not. Besides, the Galaxy Garrison saved his life. You can’t expect him to be objective."

" _Ugh_ , I know," groaned Lance, face against the table, as the yellow villain patted him on the back.

" _Hey_ , McClain, end of your break," announced Rolo, without looking up from the gameboy he had been playing for half an hour. "Time for you to show me that hiring you was not a complete mistake."

"That’s how you treat your favorite waiter, Rolo?" exclaimed Lance. "What will the customers say?"

"That your life belongs to me until eight," stated Rolo. "And you are not the favorite. Shay is the favorite. "

"Fuck you, Rolo."

"Not interested."

Rolo and Nyma had bought the place two years ago, when they discovered than a coffee shop a few streets from _Altean University_ was much more lucrative than villainy. After throwing several partitions and tearing the paper from the walls to leave the bare brick, they spent the money they had saved in transforming the place into something out of a steampunk novel: furniture in metallic tones and decorated with gears, watches of strange designs, photos from old newspapers… From his opening, _Rolo’s_ has always had a constant clientele of sleepless students, and since Nyma was hired as a journalist a month before, they had been short staffed. Hence the reason why Lance was able to work there.

Lance’s opinion of the journalists was pretty bad, but he was happy for Nyma. Especially since it left a vacant position in the coffee shop for him.

It was a good job, Rolo was a good boss and the pay was better than other places Lance has worked. However, the coffee shop was also near the _GGP’s Quarters_ in the _Middle Level_ , which put Lance on edge, even though in the week and a half he had been there, he hadn't had a problem. From time to time an officer entered the coffee shop for their caffeine dose, but they always left a few minutes later and Lance had perfected his poker face enough not to show the fear he was feeling inside each time one of them stepped in.

Sometimes heroes could also be seen walking down the street to the GGP’s Quarters. A few days before, Lance had seen Keith through the glass of the coffee shop while he was cleaning the tables, and for a moment, he thought the hero had recognized him. However, the boy had continued his way and he hadn’t returned since.

Maybe he should have been more worried about it.

“Well guys, duty calls,” announced Lance, putting on the black apron, which proclaimed _Rolo’s_ in big golden letters, and walked towards the counter when he heard the doorbell chiming. “Welcome to Rolo’s, what can I…?”

Lance froze.

Then he threw himself to the floor and hide behind the counter, next to a cupboard.

“I don’t get the insistence to have coffee here, Keith.”

"I want coffee and it’s good here."

 _"Shit, shit, shit ... what the hell are they doing here?"_ Lance screeched in his mind, desperately searching for a way out _. "Of all the coffee shops in this city, why did they have to come here?"_

"And how do you know, if you've never been here?"

"Don’t mind him, Allura." Shiro sighed in exhaustion. "After dealing with General Johnson for two hours, I also need coffee desperately. The GGP is stalling us, they won't even give us authorization to visit the prison."

"I know, Shiro, I know," muttered the girl, with the same tired tone. And after a long pause: "Hello? Can somebody attend us?"

 _"Shit,"_ thought the blue villain, shrinking even more in his hiding place and praying for Shay to appear. _"Don’t see me, don’t see me, I'm invisible, I'm invisible…”_

He slid his gaze over the cabinets the coffee-maker, painted in copper and metallic tones, in search of a solution. His eyes found the door that lead to the little kitchen, inviting Lance to a quick retreat, and his mind sang the hallelujah.

The Cuban boy began to crawl towards the door. If he could get to the kitchen, he could sneak out the back door into the alley and beg Rolo to not fire him…

“McClain, what the hell are you doing?”

Rolo’s voice shock him and Lance hit his head against the counter, falling to the floor in a mess of extremities. Clutching his aching head and swearing under his breath, Lance looked up and met the eyes of the three heroes, who looked at him like he was a nutcase.

“ _Quiznak_.”

After a few incredulous seconds of silence, Shiro narrowed his eyes, like he was trying to place him.

“ _Blue_?”

“ _QUIZNAK_!”

“Pardon, sir?” chirped Lance, using his most innocent voice and hoping the panic he was feeling didn’t reflect in his eyes.

“Oh, my God, I’m so glad you’re okay,” muttered Shiro, with a relieved smile despite the way they had parted in their last encounter.

"I do not know what you are talking about," replied the villain, standing his ground. “I have never seen you before in my life."

Lance grabbed the edges of the counter and used it to get up, while Rolo looked at him as if he had grown a second head. When he saw that Lance was stable on his two feet, he decided that whatever mess he had gotten himself into wasn't his business and returned to his table and his video game. His boss casted one last suspicious look at them, making it clear that if Lance needed help, he would intervene.

"What are you going to have, lady and gentlemen?" Lance forced himself to smile, feeling his body begin to betray and his hands begin to sweat over his pen and booklet.

The Cuban boy looked surreptitiously toward the corner of the coffee shop were his friends were while he touched his head in search of blood. Pidge was under the table, hugging her laptop, as Hunk hid his face behind a menu, peeping over it as in a bad spies movie. Shay, sweet and attentive, Shay, who had gone to their table to bring them another coffee, looked at them with a confused expression. If Hunk still managed to get a date with her after that, Lance would not doubt that it was true love.

"The city has been a mess lately and when you didn’t respond to my messages, I feared the worst," continued Shiro, ignoring Lance's words. After few seconds in which Lance struggled to maintain his fake face of confusion, the hero's smile faded and he frowned with slight irritation. "Oh, come on, Lance, I saw your face, I know it's you."

“I don’t know… wait, how do you know my name?” exclaimed Lance, alarmed.

For a moment, Lance thought he saw the panic in Shiro's eyes. However, he immediately smiled again and pointed to the golden plate with his name on apron.

" _Quiznak_."

"Listen, _Blue_ ... Lance ... we aren’t here to arrest you, we just want to talk," interjected Allura, who probably watched as all the muscles in Lance's body tensing, ready to jump over the counter and run.

"And I'm telling you, I do not know this _Blue_ you speak of," huffed Lance, stubborn as a mule, even though he had been caught. Maybe if he denied everything, he would convince them that they were imagining things.

" _HARPER_ , NO!"

Or maybe not.

The monkey-lizard ran over the tiles like a hairy bolt and launched himself at Keith, who instinctively grabbed him, keeping his claws away from his face. The animal twisted and tried to reach the hero, who looked at him as if he were the source of his nightmares.

Apparently their first meeting on the city roofs was fresh in both minds.

The sound of tables being pushed aside and chairs dragged out resounded in the now silent coffee shop. Pidge and Hunk emerged from their hiding places, running towards the heroes and almost tripping over chairs.

"Don’t hurt him!" begged Hunk. "He's just a baby, he doesn’t know what he’s doing!"

“Unhand _Harper_ , you monster!” screamed Pidge, taser in hand.

Keith’s face went from panicked to _“are you kidding me?”_ , but he made no movement to get rid of _Harper_ , who had calmed a little and seemed content to hang from the hero’s hands like a puppet. Shiro was looking at them really confused and Allura had a resigned expression, which was a little offensive.

“Katie? Is that you?” asked Shiro, agape. “Matt said you lived outside the city.”

“Well, he’s wrong,” replied Pidge, without looking at him.

“Okay, game over,” intervened Lance, seeing as Pidge tensed over the mention of his brother and the lie she always told her family. “The cat is out of the box. We’re us. You caught us. Happy?”

"Happy is not exactly the word I'm looking for," muttered Keith, watching as Hunk offered a _Harper_ a piece of chocolate to coax him out of the hero’s hands.

"As I said, we just want to talk," stated Allura. "About the GGP’s supposed _corrupt_ -"

"Are you crazy?" hissed Hunk, looking around nervously. The few customers in the coffee shop had returned to their respective conversations and phones, as if the scene they had witnessed was just a normal occurrence in their everyday. Big cities, Lance guessed. "Do you want to get us killed?"

"But ..." Allura started, only to be shushed by the villains. "For _Altea’s_ sake, we are in the middle of a coffee shop!” She screamed, her diplomatic face cracking under the irritation.

."The GGP has ears everywhere," snapped Pidge, while Hunk and Lance nodded vehemently. "Look, we don’t want to get involved in your internal problems and end up in a dark cell."

"You complain that the GGP is corrupt and then you decide not to do anything about it?" growled Keith, though careful not to raise his voice too loudly. "You drop the bomb, but when we ask for help, you back off."

Lance took a step back as if Keith had slapped him.

"It's easy to say when you don’t have to look over your shoulder every time you turn a corner, what will they do to you if they catch you? A slap on the wrist? It would be our end," sneered the green villain, glaring at the hero, who did the same. "Do you want us to help now, after the shit storm at the carnival, when they are more alert than ever?"

"They're looking for Lance," added Hunk, trying to put peace between heroes and villains. "Helping you to investigate the GGP would be delivering him on a silver platter".

Although Hunk didn’t say it aloud, Lance knew that his friends was also terrorized by the possibility the GGP would also recognize him as prisoner _0510_. Pidge also noticed the tension of Hunk’s muscles and her fury seemed to fade.

“You said it yourself, Shiro, they haven’t stopped looking for me these past two years,” blurted the blue villain, before the heroes realized the conversation’s change of tone. “Look, our temporary alliance was fun while it lasted, but heroes and villains working together never ends well. They are just things that can’t be mixed, like pizza and pineapple.”

“You know that something’s going on in the city and soon it will affect you too, beyond everything that has already happened,” pressed Allura, gripping the documents under her arm until her knuckles turned white.

“Lance, I can protect you… I-I mean, _we_ can protect you,” insisted Shiro, trying to catch Lance’s gaze with his. “I just ask that you listen to us.”

“Shiro…” muttered Lance, rubbing his temples. He was tired. It had been a couple of horrible days and he didn’t want to deal with the hero’s pleading look either, because he knew he would give in to whatever he wanted to ask him. “Go away, I have clients to attend.”

Shiro opened his mouth, but he seemed to change his mind. After a few seconds, the Japanese man backed a few steps without taking his eyes off Lance and… he plopped down.

The hero laid on the floor, face up, in the middle of the coffee shop.

And he didn’t move again.

“W-what are you doing?” asked Hunk.

“Chilling on the floor,” answered Shiro, totally relaxed. No _quiznaks_ let to be given.

“Why?”

“I feel like it.”

Lance exchanged a look with his friends, that were just as puzzled as him. For its part, the reaction of the heroes was more of exasperation. Allura was too polite to facepalm as she just stared out the large windows, pretending she didn't know Shiro, while Keith sighed in exasperation and resumed his petting on _Harper_ , who cuddled against Keith's chest and dozed peacefully.

“Shiro, go away,” ordered Lance, bending over the counter to look at the man laying on the tiles.

“No.”

“Shiro…”

“Not moving.”

“You’re being a child!”

“Well, I’m six.”

“You’re making a fool of yourself!”

“I don’t care.”

“Why are you like this?” groaned Lance, wanting to faceplant against the counter.

Shiro just looked at Lance dead in the eye and proclaimed:

“I like you a latte.”

Silence.

Lance burst out laughing, as he hadn’t done for a long time. It wasn’t particularly imaginative, but the situation was so ridiculous that he could not help it. A superhero lying on the tiles and wearing jeans, a NASA shirt and a black hoodie, spouting the most stupid pickup line of the history of humankind? How could anybody not laugh at that?

How was that Lance’s life?

“I-I can’t believe y-you said that,” wheezed Lance, drying his tears on his sleeves.

Shiro stared at Lance with a soft look in his eyes and grinning from ear to ear, with a slight blush covering his cheeks. Keith grumbled something under his breath of what Lance could only catch "this dumbass" and "crush", while Hunk and Pidge gazed suspiciously at the black hero.

Then Lance came up with something.

"Is he still affected by the _Love Ray_?" Lance exclaimed, alarmed. He didn’t want to be responsible for any kind of public humiliation. "I thought it would have disappeared by now."

“Yeah, me too,” scoffed Allura, narrowing her eyes and looking at Shiro with disapproval. “Maybe its… _uuhh_ … residual energy?”

Shiro just smiled sheepish.

“If we promise to listen to what you have to say, would you get up from the floor?” asked Hunk, looking at several clients who seemed a few seconds from taking out their phones and recording the scene.

“I’ll consider it,” answered Shiro, and gazed again to Lance. “Will you?”

“Are you going to order something or are you planning on holding the line forever?” interrupted an annoyed voice, before the blue villain could say anything. “Some of us want to order coffee before this century ends.”

The Cuban boy looked beyond his friends and realized that four people were glaring at them. An old lady with greenish skin, white hair and glass-topped glasses, seemed about to nail his cane onto Shiro’s body. Luckily, the hero sensed the danger and scrambled out of the woman’s reach.

“I don’t know. Are you gonna order something, handsome?” questioned Lance, just because he felt like being a little shit. It was a little funny to see the black hero afraid of a woman who barely reached his waist.

“Large mocha, please,” mumbled Shiro, flushing to the roots of his hair. Now he was feeling embarrassed?

Lance hurried to prepare the coffees, grinning like a mad man and feeling lighter than he had felt in a whole week. He put the orders on the counter and while he was charging the heroes, he leaned and whispered to the Japanese man:

“You’re nuts. Completely bonkers.”

“It worked. Didn’t it?”

The Cuban boy didn’t deign to give a response to Shiro and his stupid smug smile.

“Look, I still have to work,” said Lance, gazing how Allura gave a little sip to her coffee, like she was expecting it to be poisoned, “but you can send a message to Shiro’s old phone.”

“You still have it?” exclaimed Shiro, pleasantly surprised.

“Just in case I had to contact you,” Lance lied, trying not to think about the phone, turned off and hidden on his bedside table, after spending several nights wondering if he should open Shiro’s messages (and the other heroes). Lance had wanted to throw it, but he never dared to do it.

“Will you answer this time?” The distrust pretty noticeable in Allura’s voice.

Lance nodded, and after a few seconds, added: “Even if it’s to say no.”

Keith returned _Harper_ reluctantly to Hunk’s arms and followed Allura out of the coffee shop. For his part, Shiro rummaged in his wallet and left some bills in the tip’s jar, winking at Lance, before leaving.

The blue villain felt his face grow hotter.

“One cappuccino,” ordered the tiny green lady, with an indignant huff. “These youths…”

 

*-*-*-*-*-*

 

“Do you think it’s a good idea?” asked Hunk, while Lance zipped his jacket.

After what’d happened the last few days, people began going back to their homes before the twilight, so Rolo had decided to close up the coffee shop earlier.

The _Evil Trio_ had waited in front of _Rolo’s_ door with Shay until her brother arrived. Minutes in which Pidge and Lance has stepped aside to give Hunk and Shay the illusion of intimacy. The blue villain had contemplated the slight flush on both cheeks and their enthusiastic grins as they talked, glad that something had gone well in that disastrous week.

When Shay left with her brother in that rickety car of his, the three of them found themselves alone on the poorly illuminated street, and the worries returned to Hunk’s mind.

He wasn’t the only one.

“It is a horrible idea,” conceded Lance, walking fast. If they didn’t arrive before the _Watchers_ closed the doors to the _Lower Level_ , they’d be forced to cut through _Central Altean Park_ , and after his encounter with Lotor, he did not feel safe using it. “But what choice do we have? Allura is right, if we don’t do anything, the GGP may find us. Or… Sendak, if Lotor’s telling the truth.”

“Lance!” exclaimed Pidge, turning back to Lance. “Don’t tell me you’re considering Lotor’s offer.”

“Bad idea, Lance. VERY bad idea,” insisted Hunk.

“I’m not going to accept Lotor’s offer!” screamed Lance, startling several passersby, who glared at him. “But I think it’s something to keep in mind, in case things get ugly.”

“If things go as badly as you think, you don’t go to Lotor. You never resort to the creepy guy with dubious intentions! Never!”

Lance nodded at Hunk’s words with a tired sigh, knowing the boy was right. If everything went south, accepting his offer would probably make it worse.

A chill ran down Lance’s body and he burrowed inside the jacket.

Once the night fell, the city looked much more hostile. Small alleyways submerged in the darkness, strange and threatening sounds, the bluish light of the streetlights projecting thousands of twisted shadows and the silence taking over the streets as fewer cars circulated on its road and people gathered in their houses.

“And how about the other offer?” asked the Cuban boy, tentatively.

A flash of doubt appeared in his friend’s face.

“It’s an opportunity,” mumbled Pidge. “Catch them before they catch us.”

“We would be more safe if the heroes had our backs,” added Lance, without much conviction. _“If they don’t betray us,_ ” thought the blue villain, but he didn’t say it aloud.

“And… wait a minute!” yelped Pidge, stopping dead on her tracks. “We could get more information about _Daibazaal_! Lotor insinuated that the GGP knew something about what happened to my father. If we help those heroes infiltrate the GGP servers, we could also do our own research and confirm those dealings with _Daibazaal_ are real! Which would also help the heroes… because it counts as dirty laundry.”

“It could also be an opportunity to be locked in the _Maximum Security Prison_ ,” said Hunk, watching the sun go down behind the silhouette of the buildings. “And this time they’ll make sure we do not see the light of the day ever again.”

Pidge adjusted her glasses and gulped, looking away guiltily.

Last time they captured Hunk was because he helped Pidge escape from the _Galaxy Garrison Central Quarters_ , after she accidentally set off the alarm when trying to sneak into their files. Lance had talked to her a hundred of times to try to convince her that it wasn’t her fault, that Hunk made his choice, but she never believed him.

It was a sacrifice she wasn’t willing to make again.

Neither was Lance.

“What do you want to do, Hunk?” Lance asked, throwing an arm over Hunk’s shoulders and pulling him against his body. Pidge grabbed Hunk’s other hand. “If you ask us not to do it, we won’t. I’ll call Shiro’s stupid phone and tell them we’re not interested. Then we’ll go back to our lives like nothing happened.”

It was dangerous, probably more dangerous than they could imagine. They had lived their lives as villains without calling too much attention from the Garrison: stealing from their labs, destroying property, ridiculing a hero or two… If the GGP grabbed them, even if they escaped, they would be branded as terrorists. And that would be the end of their lives.

Although _Blue Wave_ was already on the GGP’s radar, his friends still had a chance.

“We can’t go back to our lives,” sighed Hunk.

“I guess not…” mumbled Lance. “I’m sorry, this is my all my fault.”

“It’s not your fault,” insisted Pidge. “What are we gonna do now?”

Hunk was silent for a few seconds, as the first drops of rain fell on the pavement. He took a deep breath and looked up, fixing his eyes with determination on his friends’.

"Go for them before they come for us," Hunk decided, clenching his fists. "Enough sitting around waiting for the day they decide that we are a problem."

"Are you sure? The GGP is only looking for me, if you lay low for a while, they won't bother you. "

Pidge punched him in the shoulder and Lance yelped.

"You're a moron!" shouted Pidge, while the blue villain rubbed his arm. "Family doesn’t abandon each other!"

Lance saw the conviction and affection in his friends’ faces, and a warm feeling bloomed in his chest. The villain let his mouth curve upward, in a smile that was almost manic.

"Okay, let's do this."

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the little joke pizza and the pinnaple, if you like the combination. I don't really like it, but I respect people's choices of toppings. It was just a little joke for a friend... if he decides to read my fanfic someday.
> 
> Answers! A war! A plot happening! Betrayals! And the Evil Trio in the middle of all! Me being more evil than the villains of the story! (Well, that's not surprising).  
> Also Shiro plopping to the floor, no quiznaks given. Yes, I think Shiro would do that. As I always say, he's a dork with the same sense of humor than Lance, and a strategist... it worked! Lance accepted to talk to them!
> 
> There were a few other pick up coffee lines that I considered, but I though it was best to go for the cute and short one. These were my other options:  
>  _"Hey, I just met you, and this is crazy, but here’s my number, so caramel me maybe?"_  
>  _"I'm going to start watching my caffeine intake, because baby you make my heart palpitate."_
> 
> On a not-completely-unrelated note, I don't like coffee and I haven't ordered coffee in a coffee-shop EVER (I always order chocolate... mmm... chocolate), so I don't know anything about it. I just googled "most popular coffees" and picked the ones who sounded better. Also fanfics helped.
> 
> So... here it is the chapter. I would like to promise the next chapter will be out earlier, but I don't know if I will be able (although I have some free time in october). However, I'll do my best! Thank you for your pacience!  
>  Also thank you for all your comments and kudos that boost my inspiration! Read all of you on the next chapter!


	6. Careful If You Walk into the Night, Because You Can’t Trust Every Shadow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, earthlings! First of all: I'm really really sorry for taking me such a long time for this chapter, but my life it's still really busy and it's going to be like this at least until february. Thank you so much for your patience and support.
> 
> Now this fanfic has [art](https://gaaledridswan.tumblr.com/post/179749863321/okay-so-im-in-love-with-the-fic-i-dont-wanna-be)! An scene from the first chapter done by the fabulous [gaaledridswan](https://gaaledridswan.tumblr.com/). Go and give her some love, because she deserves it!
> 
> Thank you once again to my awesome beta [exo_moon](https://archiveofourown.org/users/exo_moon/pseuds/exo_moon) for checking this work! 
> 
> By the way, if you have songs that talk about heroes, please, could you send me the recs? I still have songs for the next chapters, but I don't know how long it's going to be this fic and I may need them. And I always love to hear about people's recs in music!
> 
> Thank you for all your comments and kudos, they are the fuel of my imagination.

**_Chapter 6 – Careful If You Walk into the Night, Because You Can’t Trust Every Shadow._ **

 

 _“I need a hero._  
I'm holding out for a hero till the end of the night.  
He's gotta be strong, and he's gotta be fast.  
And he's gotta be fresh from the fight.”

**_FrouFrou_ ** _– Holding Out for a Hero (Cover from Bonnie Tyler’s Song)_

 

Hundreds of candles were lit up at night in the _Square of the Fallen_ , to remember the ones who died in the _Great Fire_.

Every fifteenth of October, at dawn, the people of _Altean City_ left their homes dressed up in a garment in the same purple tone as the flames that destroyed the city a century ago. As the sun disappeared over the horizon, families lit up the candles and walked to the places where they mourn their dead every year. Some went to the cemetery, others to the docks, others to the first bridge that was destroyed in the fire... Everyone had their own place.

However, many people chose to go to the _Square of the Fallen_ , a huge square from which emerged the six main streets of the _Upper Floor_. The names of the nearly one thousand dead had been carved on the tiles, made of _Altanium_ , the same strong material as the _Pillars_. Every year, President Alfor, his family, members of the Council of _Altea_ and several senior officials of the _Galaxy Garrison_ , stood on the enormous steps of the _Government Palace_ and delivered a speech in memory of those who perished in the tragedy.

As if the heavens themselves wanted to mourn the dead, that year a thick blanket of clouds hid the moon and the stars. A gentle breeze that seemed to announce a storm threatened to extinguish the candles.

Lance sat on the marble balustrade on the roof of one most luxurious buildings that surrounded the _Square of the Fallen_. With his feet hanging over the void, the villain absentmindedly watched President Alfor behind the small podium. The villain wasn’t listening to his words, more worried about Allura, who stood next to her father. She was the one who needed to warn them if something went wrong with their plan.

If she made the signal, Lance would be ready to act.

"Do you think that Pidge and Shiro have already reached the central archives?" asked Hunk, checking the earpiece for the umpteenth time, as if he expected to find a fault that explained why they hadn’t been contacted yet.

"I'm wearing the same earpiece, so I have the exact same information as both of you," growled Keith, crossing his arms and leaning against a threatening gargoyle statue. Lance may not have known him for a long time, but he was pretty sure that his cool boy pose was no more than a facade to hide his nervousness.

"They haven’t said anything, so they are probably fine," Lance tried to calm them down, even though he was on edge too.

Keith snorted and returned his gaze to the people in the square, pretending to ignore the villains.

Lance was not surprised by Keith's derogatory attitude, because none of the heroes had liked the plan to sneak into the _Galaxy Garrison Central Base_ ’s archives. However, as the GG was not going to let them access the files or at least the “uncensored” versions, they had finally agreed.

"Desperate times call for desperate measures," Pidge had told them, cutting off any objections the heroes might had. "Didn’t you want our help? This is our solution."

After that, there wasn’t much more to say.

Shiro had gotten up from his seat and began to draw what he could remember from his years as a GGP on the blackboard that the three villains had dragged to the man’s flat.

The _Galaxy Garrison_ was a large organization that was divided into different sections: the _Galaxy Garrison Police_ , the _Centre of Research and Investigation_ , and the _High School for Young Heroes_ , all three coordinated from the _Central Base of the Galaxy Garrison_.

The _Central Base_ was where the files they wanted were.

Their objective.

The _Central Base_ was several buildings of dark gray stone that surrounded a yard in whose center was the _Iverson Tower_. It was protected by an enormous stone wall, whose only entrance was the black iron doors that led to the _Square of the Fallen_.

According to Shiro, the western wing belonged to the military school for the new recruits for the _GGP_ , both the classes and the housing. _“There are several exists that the students use when they want to sneak into the city”_ , Shiro had confessed with a sheepish smile. _“It will be easy to get to the Iverson Tower from there.”_

The heroes were the ones who took care of the way in, but the villains would be the ones who would take care of the exit: if things went south, Pidge and Shiro would use the escape route to the palace.

The lands of the _Central Base_ had formerly belonged to the _Palace_ where President Alfor’s family currently lived. However, after half of the building was destroyed in the _Great Fire_ , part of its terrain was given to the _Galaxy Garrison_ for the construction of the base.

Usually it would be complete idiocy to try to escape using the _Palace_ , because it was better watched than the base, but Allura had promised to keep the security in the gardens to a minimum. As most of the guards wanted to be at home during the anniversary of the _Great Fire_ , it would be easy to accomplish that.

Lance felt a little guilty for choosing that day to break into the base, instead of honoring the dead, but an opportunity like that may not present itself again. During the anniversary, most of the _GGP_ were patrolling the streets of _Altean City_ , so it was the best time for the villains and heroes to implement their plan.

However, what worried Lance the most, was that they had just five days to elaborate the break-in-break-out plan.

“I hate this,” grumbled Lance. “I should be there with them, not here, counting candles in the square.”

He didn’t like the fact that he had to wait while Shiro and Pidge risked their necks inside the Central Base to get the information. It made him want to throw caution to the wind and go find his companions.

Lance understood the intelligence of the plan.

He knew that a small group would draw less attention.

He knew Shiro had studied there for years and could guide them through the corridors of the building.

He knew they needed Pidge's powers to enter the base and navigate their systems.

He knew Hunk and him were at risk of being recognized and had to stay away.

He knew that Allura had to accompany her father during the ceremony and control all the high ranks of the Galaxy Garrison, just in case they happened to return to the _Central Base_ before the ceremony ended.

(He also knew, even if they hadn’t been said aloud, that they had left Keith to be their babysitter. It was quite obvious).

Lance understood it, he understood it perfectly, but it was very frustrating.

“You shouldn't even be here, genius,” snapped Keith. “Right now you must be the most wanted villain in the whole country and you want to get into the wolf’s den? You’re more stupid than you look.”

“As if we were going to leave Pidge alone with you. And I’m not stupid! You’re the stupid one! And your hair stinks!”

“Guys, calm down,” interrupted Hunk, stepping in between. “We’re all nervous, but this doesn’t help anybody. What if Pidge or Shiro called for help but you were too busy arguing?”

Lance looked down in shame and Keith also looked pretty chastised, but he tried to hide it turning his back on them with a huff.

“And where did you even get those uniforms?” asked the hero, but in a calmer tone.

The blue villain caressed the GGP’s uniform he was wearing with smugness. It wasn’t a real uniform. It was just a grey jacket with pants of the same color that Lance had modified using the sewing kit his _Mamá_ had given him when he finished his first embroidery without help. However, despite his sewing skills, it wasn’t an exact copy, but Lance hoped that in the darkness, nobody would notice the little differences. To complete his disguise, Lance wore a blonde wig and fake glasses.

Hunk was wearing a similar uniform, but he had decided on a black beard and an eyepatch that made him look like a pirate. “A badass pirate”, in Lance’s words.

“Camouflage, my dear _Mullet_ ,” crooned Lance, adjusting his fake glasses like an anime boy. “If there’s a problem, I want to be able to help without being arrested as soon as I put my feet on the square.”

Hunk gave him a gentle nudge that almost knocked him off the roof, throwing him a "play nice" look. Lance raised his hands in an international peace sign.

"Among so many Garrison soldiers, we thought it would be a good idea to mix with each other," replied Hunk, with what Lance called his _big sunshine smile_. "So... Keith. What do you like to do? "

"What?" Keith looked at Hunk like he had started to dance naked and spit acid.

"Well, now that we are allies, I thought we should know each other better. A-and we have to wait for Shiro and Pidge to contact us," babbled Hunk, in his totally reasonable voice. "I was just making conversation. You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to. "

Lance glared at Keith, daring him to say anything that offended his best friend. The red hero seemed be feeling increasingly uncomfortable under the gaze of the two villains, until finally he cracked.

"I like ... _uuh_ ... drawing," muttered Keith, his body tense as if they were going to laugh at him. “Digital art. Comics. Like... things from TV shows and books and those things.”

Lance raised his eyebrows, surprised. That was... pretty cool actually.

Then it crossed his mind to ask him if he drew fanart of heroes and villains, and if he had a Tumblr account or a Patreon (not like his broke ass could pay for the Mullet’s drawings). However, he didn’t know how to raise the question without revealing his involvement in a certain fan community and how his internet history contained a certain number of searches for the _#WaveLightning_ and the _#BlueBlack_ tags.

"Interesting," commented the villain. "You know what? Hunk is right, we should know each other more thoroughly. Let's talk about things. What is your favorite color? Food? Allergies? Even better, how did you know I was the one in the coffee shop?"

“ _Hmm_...” mumbled Keith, a little shocked by Lance’s velocity of shooting questions. “I... didn’t. I just saw you in the coffee shop and... well... Shiro was moping and you were his type.”

“Hi-hi-his type?” sputtered Lance, blushing and recriminating his mind with the little wisp of hope blooming in his chest. The blue villain knew he was attractive, but imagining his embarrassing crush being reciprocated was just exposing his heart to being broken. “What makes you...?”

“My turn,” interrupted the hero. “How’s... _Harper_?”

“HE’S COMING!”

Lance flinched, almost slipping from the railing he was sat, but Hunk and Keith managed to catch him on time.

“HE’S COMING FOR ALL OF US!”

A man in shreds and a crazy look ran among the crowd in the square, pushing people out of his way, in his desperation to reach the Palace, where the President was.

"HE WILL DESTROY US ALL!"

Several soldiers tried to grab him, but the man screamed and struggled as if he was possessed. A GGP agent grabbed his arm, but the ragged man knocked him down with a heavy punch.

"THE FLAMES WERE A WARNING! ZARKON IS COMING FOR ALL OF US!" he screamed to a group of old women who moved away, terrified.

The blue villain watched, horrified, as four other GGP agents jumped on him and managed to immobilize him, as the man clawed and bit like a wild dog.

“NO ONE WILL STOP HIM! NO-!”

One of the soldiers gagged the man as his teammates dragged him out of the square. A frightened murmur ran through the crowd and even Alfor had stopped his speech, looking at the soldiers with a face that Lance could not decipher on the distance.

“Every year, there’s one or two people who prophesy Zarkon’s return,” pointed out Keith, gazing surreptitiously at the way Lance’s hands trembled on the railing. “He won’t be the last one tonight.”

“Well, this year they have reasons to worry, right?” muttered Lance, with a grim smile.

The red hero pursed his lips and said nothing.

Lance sighed.

He had never been in the _Upper Floor_ during the anniversary of the _Great Fire_ , always preferring to celebrate it at the docks with his neighbors, but he knew there was always conspiracy theorists that prophesied the end of the city every year. Another time he might have taken it as a joke, but with the events of the past weeks, he was too afraid that in this occasion it would be true.

“Are you okay, Lance?” asked Hunk, when Keith walked away a few steps to watch the street where the soldiers had disappeared.

“As well as I could be, I guess. You?”

“Asking myself if I should have brought another pair of underwear,” snickered his friend. Then he got closer and whispered on Lance’s ear: “Do you think we should have told them about Lotor? You know... the thing about Haggar, Sendak and the hypothetical future war.”

“We don’t even know if the information is true,” answered Lance, in the same tone. “Or if we can trust them.”

“Well, we are going to break into the _Central Base_ of the _Garrison_ with them and we are risking our necks with the information they have given us,” his friend pointed out. “I’d say we trust them a little.”

Lance scowled, knowing Hunk was right.

“We could tell them about Lotor,” suggested Hunk. “Just that, so they can be alert.”

“They wouldn’t believe it was a casual encounter. And that’s if they believe we saw him. Then they would want to know exactly what he said and we’d have to lie to them and hope they wouldn't catch it, or tell them the truth, at which they would demand proof we don’t have,” muttered Lance. “I think it’s better we keep the information to ourselves.”

“And if things go south, we tell them everything?”

“And if things go south, we tell them everything.”

“Tell us what?”

They both jumped at Keith’s voice.

“That... _ehh_... _uhh_...” babbled Lance, trying desperately to find something to say.

“We have decided to put a statue like that in our _Evil Lair_!” exclaimed Hunk, pointing at the big stone lion.

Keith turned around and looked at the ugly statue, and then he glared at both villains.

Something all rich people of the _Upper Floor_ seemed to have in common, was their need to show off their wealth with ostentatious (and generally hideous) pieces of art. They were on the fourth floor, on the rooftop of a beautiful white building with several statues of lions roaring to the _Square of the Fallen_ from their positions on the railing.

Lance and Hunk had painted mustaches while they were waiting for Alfor to begin his speech, so his words were not particularly believable.

“It’s like you’re not even trying to find a good excuse,” deadpanned Keith. “I knew we couldn’t trust you. What are you plotting?”

“Us? Plotting? How dare you! You, distrustful _Mullet_! How can you even insinuate something like that? Something so mean, so...”

Luckily, Shiro’s voice cracking on their earpieces saved Lance from having to keep adding adjectives until he could come up with an excuse that wasn’t completely ridiculous.

_“We’re in.”_

“Oh, thank God,” muttered Lance, activating the speech setting on his earpiece. “Are you okay? Why did it take you so long? I was starting to think they’d caught you!”

 _“You know me better than that,”_ replied Pidge’s smug voice. _“I’m sitting on the floor of the Archives and connecting wires to their database. We’ll soon know all their dirty little secrets.”_

 _“Shiro, what happened?”_ asked Allura, in a voice that was barely a whisper. _“You were supposed to contact us ten minutes ago.”_

_“There were some complications. With all that has happened in the city, they doubled security and it has taken us longer to get around them.”_

_“It was mostly because of the students drinking in the middle of the corridor we wanted to cross. The GGP’s finest.”_ Pidge grunted and Lance heard something creak and fall to the floor. _“Shiro, pass me that sire. No, not that one. The red one.”_

“Will you be able to copy the information in time?” questioned Hunk, looking nervously at the high ranks of the GGP on the stairs of the Palace. “You don’t have much time. You know that the generals don’t stay very long once Alfor ends his speech.”

 _“My brother designed a good security system, but I’m better,”_ she bragged. _“It won’t take more than a few minutes.”_

 _“Stay tuned to anything that may happen and let us know when the speech ends. Allura, if anyone leaves the square before time, give us a warning_. _We will copy the information and leave. In and out. Fast and leaving no proof.”_

Lance snickered and before his brain could process his thoughts, his mouth was already talking:

“In and out? No dinner first? I thought you were a gentleman.”

Silence.

Then groans and curses of _“Lance!”_ and _“This is not the time”_ invaded the line of communication between heroes and villains. However, they were soon interrupted when Shiro spoke in a low tone, almost a purr.

_“Well, I don’t know about that, but I’m a man and I’m gentle... unless you ask me not to be.”_

Lance almost choked on his own spit.

Where were the times when Shiro blushed and stammered? Lost after the impact of the _Love Ray_ , it seemed. If Allura and Keith (and Pidge, after an exhaustive analysis with her new scanner) hadn’t confirmed that the effects of the _Love Ray_ had disappeared, in moments like this, the blue villain would suspect he was still under its influence.

After the initial surprise, Lance released a startled laugh, his cheeks flaming ablaze.

 _“Stop you two! This is serious,”_ snapped Pidge, even though Lance could hear in her voice that she was trying to contain her laugher. _“Shiro, stop smiling like a dumbass and give me that other wire.”_

“I know, I know, Pidge. It’s very serious spywork. Do you need me to sing the _Mission Impossible_ theme?”

Shiro chuckled and Lance felt like it was a win.

The moment was broken after a few seconds, when the lights of the rooftop turned on.

“Shit!” exclaimed Keith, plastering his back to one of the statues. “Weren’t they supposed to be at the ceremony?”

_“Keith, what is happening?”_

Lance and Hunk jumped behind a plant with colorful flowers. As the owners seemed to want to transform the rooftop on some kind of botanical garden, there was enough vegetation to use as hiding.

The Cuban boy peeked through the leaves and stared at the glass doors that lead to a luxurious living room. A middle age blonde woman dressed in clothes that probably cost more than Lance’s life, sat on an immaculate white sofa with a coy smile. Behind her came a pink skinned woman with four black eyes. She left her coat fell to the floor and approached the sofa, kissing the other woman passionately.

“That’s the nanny of the children,” gasped Lance, remembering the family photo in the last gossip magazine. At the stares Keith and Hunk sent him, he defended himself. “What? I like to be informed.”

“Well, now we know why she wasn’t at the ceremony with her husband and children,” mumbled Hunk, crawling towards the railing. “We have to go.”

 _“What is happening?”_ repeated Shiro, slightly frantic.

“Mrs. Voorhees has returned sooner than expected,” answered the red hero, glaring at the villains.

“How we were supposed to know that she would want to meet her lover?” protested Lance, helping Hunk to attach the cable. “It’s not our fault!”

“We can’t go! We can’t lose this vantage point! We have to stay and keep informing about what we see!”

“And if we stay, we’ll get caught! Which will be even worse!” insisted Hunk, tying the cable to his belt and straddling the railing.

 _“Hunk is right,”_ intervened Allura. _“Go to the square and mix into the crowd. I’ll take it from here. If I see something suspicious I’ll warn Shiro and Pidge.”_

Keith frowned but he didn’t protest.

Hunk descended the cable, closely followed by Keith, as Lance watched the crystal doors just in case Mrs. Voorhees and her lover decided to move their activities to the rooftop.

“Come on, come on, come on...” muttered Lance, tying the cable to his waist and almost falling down when he thought he heard the doors opening.

The lampposts were turned off before the ceremony started and they wouldn't be turned back on until the speech ended. Lance thanked the darkness that he wouldn’t be seen climbing down the wall of the mansion, which made the descent easier than the climbing had been.

When Lance’s feet touched the asphalt, Hunk pushed a button embed on the cable and the end attached to the railing was released without making any noise.

“Well, here we are,” announced Lance, trying to cover his nervousness at being once again among people. Nobody was looking at them, every eye fixed on the Palace, except a little girl that hid her face in her father’s neck when she saw Hunk and Lance’s uniforms. However, it didn’t make him feel safer.

The silence of the square was sepulchral and the candles held by the people created a lugubrious and spectral atmosphere, as Alfor’s voice of reverberated through the speakers.

A chill ran down Lance’s back.

What if people realized that the uniform was fake? What if they recognized him? If one of the people screamed “villain!”, all of the GGP’s security would be on them.

“Are you okay?” asked his friend, when Lance took a step closer to him.

“I will be when we get out of here.” The blue villain observed how Hunk’s eyes scanned the crowd with the same fear he was feeling. “You?”

“What you said.”

Keith motioned for them to follow him and began to move along the front of the building, towards an area where there were fewer people and would be easier to exit the square. Then they could find another position to continue their surveillance from a place where there would be no risk of an unfaithful woman and her lover discovering them.

However, as they approached one of the streets, Lance heard a new voice behind him and he knew that, like most of his plans, it was going to fail.

“Keith? I thought that you weren’t going to come to the ceremony.”

Matt Holt.

The damned Matt Holt.

“Shit,” cursed Keith, trying to remain calm even though his eyes screamed panic. “Hello, Matt.”

 _“Matt?”_ muttered Pidge in their ears, with a trembling voice.

Lance stepped back, trying to hide behind the hero in red as he touched the fake glasses on his face, making sure they were still there. Hunk pretended to find Alfor's speech really interesting as he fumbled with the false beard. The villains had only seen Pidge's brother a couple of times when they were studying at the GGHS and he doubted Matt would remember their faces, but with those geniuses, you never knew.

“What are you doing here?” asked Matt, stepping between them and the street they were trying to reach.

 _"Shit, shit, shit..."_ thought Lance, desperately searching for an escape route that didn’t involve trying to go through the crowd.

“I’m allowed to change my mind.”

_“There has to be some-HOLY QUIZNAK!”_

Lance’s eyes almost fell through his glasses when he looked at Matt.

The man was as tall as Lance and more muscular, and not even the ugly grey uniform of the Galaxy Garrison could hide that. He was no longer using those ridiculous glasses, showing his big honeyed eyes. Matt wore his brown hair in a ponytail and he had a scar on his left cheek that gave him a rugged look that suited him.

Matt Holt? More like _Matt Hot Damn_.

“At ease, soldier,” joked Matt.

“Oh, no. He’s hot,” breathed Lance, before he could stop his mouth, catching Matt’s attention.

 _“Lance! Don’t even think about it!”_ growled Pidge in his ear, accompanied by the sound of something falling to the floor in the distance.

“And... who are your friends?”

“Dirk Blocker.” The Cuban boy put his best flirty smile in his face and extended his hand. “And this is my partner, Joel McKinnon. And you’re...?”

_“For Alfor’s sake, Lance! He’s my brother!”_

“Like the actors that play _Hitchcock_ and _Scully_ in _Brooklyn 99_?”

“Yes, but no relation.”

“I’m Matthew Holt, but you can call me Matt.” Matt took Lance’s offered hand and shook it, looking at him with bad disguised interest. A pleasant tingle ran through Lance. “Are you the backup they sent from the _Lower Level_?”

“Yes, they are,” interrupted Keith, taking Hunk’s and Lance’s arms. “And we should go. The speech has ended.”

Lance stiffened.

Alfor had finished talking and descended from the podium, followed closely by Allura’s help. The girl was looking at the crowd nervously, probably looking for them.

Fioretta Castiglione, the opera singer that had closed the ceremony the last fifteen years, ascended the stairs of the Palace in a long purple dress with her long white hair waving in the wind.

The song _“La Citta Piange”_ (The City Cries) was ten minutes long, so they didn’t have much more time before the GGPs went back to the base.

 _“I need more time!”_ protested Pidge. _“There’s thousands of archives!”_

“There’s no more time,” Lance wanted to tell her, but with Matt staring at them, it was better to keep his mouth shut.

With one lingering smile, Lance started to follow Keith.

“Matt, it’s been a pleasure, but Keith’s right. I should-...”

A hand closed around Lance’s wrist and he found himself looking at Matt’s eyes, through the fake glasses.

“Have we met before?” asked the man. His gaze had lost that mischievous glint and he was scrutinizing Lance with an intensity that made the villain really nervous.

“I-I don’t think so...” Lance managed to answer with something that he hoped it resembled a playful smile. “I’d have never forgotten an officer so handsome as you. By the way, is it hot or it’s just you?”

Matt raised his eyebrows, surprised by the fast change of subject, but his hand didn’t lose his grip on Lance’s arm.

“Are you a parking ticket? ‘Cause you’ve got fine written all over you.”

Pidge’s brother opened his mouth, but Lance interrupted him again.

“I don’t have a library card, but do you mind if I check you out?”

“You-”

“If you were a flower, you’d be a _damnnn_ -delion.”

“Matt, it’s good to see you, but we have to go,” interrupted Keith, standing between the two men and forcing Matt to release Lance. “You know how Iverson gets if we’re not where he ordered us.”

Matt narrowed his eyes. It seemed like he was going to say something but then he raised his hand to his ear, probably receiving a message thought his own earpiece.

Keith pushed Hunk and Lance, urging them to move before Matt ended his conversation. Or he tried to do that, because the crowd seemed to be hypnotized by the song and they were like a big wall that kept them from moving more than a few steps.

“W-well... I wouldn’t mind going to jail if he was the one to put me in cuffs,” tried to joke Lance, a little shaken, as he caressed his wrist. Matt had more strength than he thought.

 _“We don’t have time for this, Lance,”_ cut Shiro’s voice, colder than ice. _“We are in the middle of a mission.”_

“What...? Come on, Shiro, it’s a joke.” Lance was shocked. Just a few minutes ago they had been goofing around. “I mean, he just... he’s handsome. He grew up very nicely.”

_“Just focus on the mission.”_

Lance frowned. What the _quiznak_...?

“You’re an idiot,” snapped Keith, stopping his attempts to make his way through the people. 

“What? Why? What did I do?”

Hunk looked as confused as Lance.

Before Lance could nag Keith about the terrible thing had he had supposedly done, a hand fell on Lance’s shoulder. A big scarred hand and a voice that Lance had prayed not to hear outside the television.

“Who authorized you to abandon your positions?”

Daniel Rogers, the Warden of the High Security Prison.

The grip on the villain’s arm forced him to turn around and face the soldier.

Almost two meters tall and built like a tank, Warden Rogers made up a really intimidating vision. He was undoubtedly an attractive man, with his blue eyes, short blond hair and strong jaw. However, it was easier to admire him when a TV screen separated both of you, and not when the coldest eyes Lance had ever seen stared you down.

“Ah, w-we... just...” stammered Lance. “We t-thought...”

“Stop babbling and answer me, soldier!” ordered Warden Rogers. “Who authorized you to abandon your positions?”

Lance flinched as he had slapped him. He wanted to speak, but his brain couldn’t stop screaming to run as he looked at the face of the Lower Level’s personal _boogeyman_.

Despite his thirty-five years, Warden Rogers instilled fear even among the most powerful villains in the city. He had been the youngest soldier to graduate in the GGP and the non- _Gifted_ who had the most arrests in his years of service. Although he had not been on the streets since he had become the warden from the prison, three years before, the _Gifted_ from the _Lower Level_ were still afraid to walk alone in the night.

Who knew when Warden Rogers’ hatred for the _Gifted_ would make him reestablish his patrols?

"I saw someone suspicious and asked them to come with me to check it out." Keith stepped forward and stood in front of the warden, glaring at him defiantly, even though the soldier towered over the hero.

"I should have guessed that you or Shirogane would be behind this," huffed Warden Rogers, with an unpleasant smile. "But I thought a strong and brave superhero like you did not need anyone to take care of something like that."

"And I thought the goal was to maintain security in the square, but it doesn’t seem like you're doing such a good job, if you allow suspicious people to walk so close to our leaders."

"You are not authorized to use my soldiers, Kogane."

"The last time I checked it, Voltron's heroes have more authority on the streets than the mere soldiers."

 _"Calm down, Keith,"_ Allura's voice whispered through the headphones, her voice filled with tension. _"You know he just wants an excuse. He just needs one."_

Warden Rogers looked at Keith with so much hatred that Lance was sure that if the looks killed, Keith would be a pile of ash.

“One day, you and your freak friend will end up both locked up in my prison and then we’ll see if you’re so cocky.”

Keith clenched his fists and took a step forward, but Lance's hand shot up and grabbed the hero before he could do anything rash. They were in the middle of a square full of civilians and GGPs with weapons capable of subjugating the _Gifted._ As Allura had said, he just needed an excuse.

However, that movement drew Rogers' attention to himself.

"Name and identification number, soldier."

"W-what?"

"You've heard me. Name and identification number. _Now_. "

Lance’s mind froze, unable to remember how the soldiers' identification numbers worked.

The first number was the level where you worked, the two ...  maybe it was the three? The three following numbers were the district and the following ones your personal number. Oh, God, how many numbers were there? Five or six? Four?

They hadn’t planned to talk to anybody. They hadn’t made up any kind of identification number!

“I-I... am...” babbled Lance, biting his lips and looking at anywhere that weren’t those cold eyes. “ _Uhh_... I-I...”

Keith was staring at him with wide eyes, urging him to made up something, and Hunk... Hunk...

Hunk was shaking. Maybe he wasn’t shaking in a notorious way, but Lance could see the tremor of his hands and the muscles under his false uniform completely tense, as if holding back the urge to run away... His breathing was fast and his eyes were unfocused, like his mind was trapped somewhere far away.

“Is there any problem?”

“I’m not talking to you, Kogane,” snapped the warden, invading Lance’s personal space. “Unless you want to spend the night in a prison cell, you will give me the information I’ve asked.”

“I-I’m Dirk Blocker,” Lance listened himself saying.

“It seems you have some kind of hearing problem or an authority problem. For your sake, I hope it’s the first thing,” threatened the soldier. “I have asked for your name and number of identification. And look at me while I talk to you!”

 _“Just make it up one,”_ screamed Pidge, almost making him jump. _“Anything!”_

“Unless you don’t have one,” continued the warden, scrutinizing as his hand slid to the belt where he kept his stun gun. Put enough electricity in a _Gifted’s_ body and they would not be able to use their powers. “I remember every face and every name, and yours doesn’t ring any bells. Who are you?”

“They are from the _Lower Level_ , that’s why you haven’t seen them before,” answered Matt, popping from somewhere with a big smile.

Lance resisted the urge to rub his eyes and check if it was real.

Matt’s whole demeanor had changed. His pose was carefree and relaxed, and he even dared to put his hand on the warden’s back. The villain didn’t know Matt very well, but his smile seemed not to reach his eyes. What was happening?

“ _Lower Level_?” asked Warden Rogers, skeptic.

“Yes, Daniel, _Lower Level._ It’s not a place you spend a lot of time, unless you’re bringing criminals to justice. Don’t you?”

“You know them?”

“Of course,” declared Pidge’s brother, with a certainty that almost made Lance doubt for a few seconds. What kind of game was Matt playing? “They are Dirk Blocker and Joel McKinnon. Good soldiers. A little green, but good soldiers. Come on, trust me, would I lie to you?”

Taking advantage they were distracted by their bickering, Lance got closer to Hunk.

“ _Hey_ ,” mumbled Lance, taking his friend’s hand. The Samoan boy clung to it, with a force that almost crushed Lance’s bones.

“He was there,” gasped Hunk, loosening his grip when he saw Lance’s pained grimace. “He... he w-was so furious... and he hated me so much... He w-wanted to know how Pidge broke into the B-Base... He j-just... he was there, Lance... He was there...”

All thoughts in Lance’s mind slowed down.

The fear of Daniel Rogers watching the recordings of the Carnival and recognizing him under the wig and the glasses disappeared from his mind.

He knew that Warden Rogers would kill him.

He knew that Warden Rogers would torture him.

He knew that Warden Rogers would make him regret being born.

But nothing mattered in that moment, because Lance was calm, because he had reached that moment where you’re so full of rage that you feel detached.

With his eyes fixed on the man’s face, he could feel the sounds disappearing around him. Hunk’s words buzzed on his ears, mixed up with the sounds of a raging ocean inside his chest.

He could feel the movement of the water inside the city’s plumbing, under his feet, barely separated by an asphalt layer. He could feel the metal shaking trying to contain the water that moved inside it, to the beat of blue villain’s emotions.

The metal cracked and split...

...it would be easy, so easy to...

“Lance, no!” hissed Hunk, sounding panicked.

A hand clenched on his arm to the point of being painful and Lance felt he returned to his body, like being waken up from a deep dream.

The Cuban boy blinked, looking at Hunk, who was holding him by the arms with despair. Keith was also watching him with a strange look that the young man could not interpret. A woman gave a small surprised cry when her feet slipped on a frozen puddle a few steps from where they were.

“What...?” started Lance, but he was interrupted by Warden Roger’s voice.

“I don’t trust you as far as I can throw you, Holt.”

“Come on, Warden Rogers,” intervened a new voice. “That’s not a very nice thing to say.”

Sometime since Warden Rogers arrival, the song had ended and the officers were no longer on the stairs of the Palace. Lance hadn’t realized they were so close to the Palace, until he found himself beside President Alfor and Allura. The girl was looking at them with too much calm to be real. The president’s bodyguards, a man and a woman with blue skin and dressed in tactical gear, stood a few steps from them.

“You shouldn’t be in the middle of this crowd, sir,” answered Warden Rogers, giving him a military salute. Lance and Hunk imitated him.

“Nonsense. I’m old but not completely defenseless,” replied Alfor, with a placid smile. “Furthermore, most people have already left the square.”

It was true. The candles had been deposited in the middle of the square and the people walked towards the streets to arrive at their homes before midnight. Just a few groups stayed behind, praying or leaving bouquets of flowers.

“Is there a problem, Warden Rogers?”

“Nothing that can’t be easily resolved, sir. Just a little insubordination. These soldiers left their positions and then refused to identify themselves.”

“I bet that all this is all a big misunderstanding,” said Alfor, turning to Hunk and Lance. “I’m sure these young men didn’t mean to... insubordinate? Can you tell us your names and your numbers, please?”

The Alteans lived for several centuries and just looking at President Alfor, it was clear that he had lived most of them. He was tall and despite his age, he still was pretty fit. However, he was also seemed fragile, and not even the white ceremonial armor and the purple cloak were enough to hide that. Long white hair and beard, face full of wrinkles and Altean marks from the same color of his light blue eyes.

Kind bur fierce eyes, but not the same as Allura’s. She was exactly like her mother...

... who was still in the stairs of the Palace, talking to several of the GGP’s officers.

“Joel McKinnon. _Lower Level_. Number 3-27-00217,” answered Hunk, with a stern voice that Lance wouldn’t have thought him capable a few seconds ago. “This is Dirk Brocker. _Lower Level_. Number 3-27-... _ehh_... 0021...8,”

Lance mentally fist bumped. It would take a while for them to check the numbers, enough for them to disappear.

“See? There isn’t any problem. They were probably just nervous. You have a very intimidating personality, Warden Rogers.”

The blue villain didn’t need to look at the warden’s face to know that he didn’t believe any world, but it wasn’t like he could contradict _Altea’s_ president in public.

“Are you okay?” whispered Lance to Hunk. That was a question that seemed to be repeated too much and the villain was starting to hate it.

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Hunk...”

“Hey, young man, you are a big fella. Would you mind helping out an old man like me?” Lance and Hunk jumped. Alfor had approached them so silently that they hadn’t realized he was doing that until they had him at their side.

“O-oh, sure,” answered Hunk, taking the arm Alfor was offering him. The yellow villain wasn’t panicking, but it was probably because the situation was so surreal that his brain was still processing it. “To the palace... _uh_... sir?”

“Thank you. These old bones are not what they used to be.”

Lance looked at Allura and Keith, who were frozen and not knowing what to do. In situations like this, Lance chose to run, but in that occasion it wasn’t a viable option.

“Allura, my dear, would you mind helping your mother before she kills somebody?” asked Alfor, making a gesture towards first Lady Melenor, who seemed two seconds away from crushing Iverson’s face against the stairs. 

The blue villain begged with his eyes to Allura not to leave them alone, but there wasn’t an excuse she could use to refuse her father’s petition. With a strained smile, the girl said goodbye to Warden Rogers and Matt, who looked at her with a dreamy expression, and kissed Alfor’s cheek before walking to the Palace.

“Always a pleasure, Warden Rogers. We’ll see each other at the next Council’s meeting. Goodbye, Mr. Holt and Mr. Kogane.” Alfor smiled and gave a few pats to Hunk’s arm. “Let’s go, young men. Today has been exhausting, we’ll use the backdoor to the Palace. I’m too tired to deal with the press or more diplomacy.”

Still stunned by the turn of the events, Hunk and Lance let themselves be guided towards one of the streets that bordered the façade of the building and would lead them to the garden’s door. It would not take more than a few minutes to reach the backdoor, but that meant spending those minutes alone with the most powerful man in _Altea_.

As they were leaving the square, Lance could feel Warden Roger’s eyes on his back.

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

Despite Alfor’s claims about his old bones, his pace was firm and he did not seem to rely too much on Hunk, who was tense as a violin cord. Lance was very uncomfortable too, but it wasn’t because he had Altea’s President hanging from his arm.

No, it was the silence what was making the villain nervous.

The streets that surrounded the palace and the _Central Base_ were always full of security, so people tended not to go through them. Nobody wanted to be arrested just because you were walking your dog. The bluish light of the streetlights gave the street a cold and threatening look, which only contributed to the feeling of unease that Lance felt.

“It’s a beautiful night,” commented Alfor, contemplating the starry sky that rose above their heads. The breeze stirred his white hair, which seemed to shine under the moonlight.

“I-it is, sir.” Hunk gulped, looking at the bodyguards that followed them a few meters behind. Why couldn’t they help the president?

“Yes, yes, very beautiful. In a... very beautiful... _uh_... street,” babbled Lance. “I love... everything... I love... that.” The blue villain, in an attempt to stop his stammering and making a fool of himself, pointed the first thing that caught his attention, which was a fountain erected in the middle of a little square. “Very... _uh_... artistic.”

Lance had taken off the headphones when they were far enough away from Warden Rogers and after checking that Shiro and Pidge were okay. The old man was quite insightful and it would not be good for them if he noticed the "non-regulatory headphones." However, now he felt grateful that the heroes couldn’t hear him babbling like an idiot.

“A pretentious fountain, made by a pretentious artist,” huffed Alfor, in a very un-presidential way. “I liked it better when it had an ice penis on top of it.”

Lance almost choked on air.

That was the fountain that they had vandalized a week after it was built, because the artist was a rich asshole who made a great donation to the GG’s laboratories. Unfortunately, the GGP had managed to melt Lance's ice in just one day, but the photographs were still circulating on internet and the fountain was unofficially renamed the _Fontana di Penis_.

That way the _Evil Trio_ won the hatred of a world-renowned artist.

“The president has said penis,” gasped Hunk. “Penis.”

However, his whisper was not so soft as not to be heard by Alfor, who began to laugh, loudly and carefree. After a few seconds, the president had a coughing fit. He would have fallen to the ground on his knees, if not for Hunk’s reflexes, who caught him by the waist. Two seconds later, the president's bodyguards had ripped Alfor from Hunk's arms and helped him tilt his body so that he breathed easier, too precisely not to be part of their routine.

If Lance had not been so worried, he would have found funny how the fierce two-meters-tall bodyguards fussed over the man like a pair of mother hens.

“I’m fine, I’m fine,” panted Alfor. “It’s just a little cough.”

"T-that ... that didn’t sound like ‘just’ a little cough," replied the blue villain, not knowing what to do.

Lance had heard rumors about Alfor's illness, but he had always believed they were just that, rumors. After seeing the president struggle to take a breath, he was starting to suspect that they were not just that.

And that scared him.

“No, I guess not,” sighed Alfor, with a tired smile. Then he turned to the woman and asked, in a joking tone: “Ayam, how many chances do I have of getting out of tomorrow's event without the rest of the Council or the Garrison asking a lot of questions?”

“Slim to none, sir.”

“That’s what I thought,” mumbled the president, and more to himself than to the villains, he added: “I didn’t want to believe it, but it seems my time is coming to an end.”

“Y-your... time in the presidency?” mused the Cuban boy, dreading the answer. “Or your time... at all?”

Both bodyguards turned quickly towards him, as if they had forgotten that Hunk and Lance were there. All worry had disappeared from their faces and they were scrutinizing them with the same fierce expression. Watching the blue tone of their skin and their tattooed bald heads, Lance had the thought that maybe they were siblings.

“You don’t have to worry about that, kid.”

“From where I’m standing, I _DO_ have to worry,” snapped Lance. Even in the dim light of the streetlights, the villain could see that Alfor was very pale. “Please, answer the question.”

“I am an old man...”

“Are you dying?” intervened Hunk.

“Not yet, young man, but...”

"But your time in the presidency is coming to an end," Lance concluded, sounding like a death sentence. And maybe it was.

"So that seems."

Those words fell on Lance like a bucket of cold water.

"No ... no ... You can’t just leave!" Hunk screamed with despair, before the Cuban boy could open his mouth. "You ... you just ... you just CAN’T!"

Hunk's voice echoed in the silence of the street, frightening several birds that drank at the fountain. Alfor's bodyguards drew their weapons, ready to attack his friend in case he made any violent movement, but the president stopped them with a gesture.

“Sorry, kid, but not even warriors are eternal,” answered Alfor. “There are already rumors about my illness and the hounds of the press have started to sniff in that direction. You know what will happen when they confirm I’m sick.”

If the Galaxy Garrison caught a whiff of Alfor illness, they would make him resign.

"But you can’t leave!" insisted Hunk. "You are the only thing that stands between the Garrison and its control of the city."

Lance grabbed his friend's arm, hoping the gesture reminded him they were still wearing the fake uniforms.

"I was hoping that the moment I had to retire, Allura would be ready to succeed me. However, my time is running out faster than I thought."

"But ... you ... you have to resist," pleaded Hunk, like a lost child. "You have to do it..."

Things were bad in the city but they still could get worse.

The Council that governed the country was formed by one hundred people and it was unofficially divided between those who sided with Alfor and those who were with the Galaxy Garrison. If Alfor left the presidency, the Garrison would gain even more support and the city would be lost for the _Gifted_.

"I'm sorry kid," repeated Alfor, watching the desperation in Hunk’s eyes. "I'll hold what I can, but I don’t know how long that will be. Soon it won’t depend on me."

Lance opened his mouth to continue arguing, but a movement out of the corner of his eye caught his attention and the words died in his throat. The blue villain turned quickly but the street was completely empty. No mysterious shadows, no strange noises. Nothing seemed to disturb the calm of the city.

Probably just his imagination.

“Sir, we have to go,” announced the woman, Ayam, offering her arm for Alfor to lean on. “It’s dangerous to stand in the open for too long.”

“Wait...” started Hunk, but he was dismissed by the other bodyguard.

“Go home, runts.”

“Why did you ask us to accompany you?” exclaimed Lance. “If you planned to ditch us, I mean.”

Hunk stomped on his foot, reminding him that it was what both wanted. To leave as soon as possible.

“Well, you two seemed _really_ desperate to leave.”

Alfor was pinning them with a piercing look that seemed to know too much and Lance started to panic.

Had they been discovered? Was the president going to set his bodyguards on them? Were they going to be locked up forever? Oh, God. They had been discovered by the most powerful man in Altea. They were _quiznaked_ , they were...

“Warden Rogers can be a hardass.”

Or maybe not.

“You’re good kids and I don’t want to keep you all night,” said Alfor, whose face had gained a little more color. “Go home. Ayam and Noyam will take it from here.”

The president and his bodyguards turned around and Lance felt himself relax as they left. However, they stopped after a few steps and Alfor pointed out in a very happy voice:

“By the way, young man, your beard is crooked.”

Hunk raised his hands to his face, where part of the false beard had fallen off and hung ridiculously from his chin.

Uh, oh.

 _Quiznak_.

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

“He knew, Hunk, he knew! Oh, God, we’re _quiznaked!_ ”

“We don’t know what he knows! He just saw my beard... falling down! And he saved us! He let us go!”

Hunk and Lance had always felt paranoid when they walked down the _Upper Level’s_ streets, careful of every shadow, like the buildings themselves knew that they were rats from the _Sewers_. But waiting for their friend’s arrival in the middle of the night after what happened in the last weeks? After what happened with Alfor? That fear had increased exponentially.

Once the President had disappeared into the night with his bodyguards, the villains had contacted the heroes and Pidge. The happiness of knowing they were all safe and sound disappeared when the heroes told them to stay put, that they would pick them up.

Shiro and Pidge had managed to leave the Base without being discovered, although it had been a close call. Very close call. Like a wall separating them from Warden Rogers storming on the corridors of the Base close. Lance had noticed the trembling of Pidge’s voice through the earpiece, so he had decided to wait to tell them about what happened with Alfor. However, that had meant saying they were fine and that they didn’t mind the heroes taking a long detour to avoid any GGP soldiers.

Lance and Hunk had been sitting on the fountain’s marble for fifteen minutes.

Fifteen minutes waiting in a too silent, too open street, with too many shadows and alleys where anyone could be hiding.

Fifteen minutes fighting with the growing feeling of uneasiness.

Lance hoped their friends hurried.

“Maybe it’s a trap,” mumbled the blue villain. “He’s trying to make us lower our guard and _ZAP,_ he’ll arrest us!”

“That doesn’t make any sense. It would have been easier to capture us in the square, with all the exits watched by the GGP.”

“Well, do you have another _explana_ -?”

“Lance,” interrupted his friend, looking at something over the Cuban boy’s shoulder. “Look.”

Some of the lampposts of the street through which Alfor had left, had gone out and left a section in complete darkness.

Two more streetlights went out, one on each side of the street.

Then two more.

And two others.

Getting closer...

...to the place where Lance and Hunk were, staring in horror as the darkness approached.

“We should go,” whispered Hunk, standing slowly. “Now.”

“RUN!” screamed Lance, grabbing the Samoan’s boy hand and flying in the opposite direction, trying to outrun the shadows.

But after just two steps they were forced to stop.

The lights of the street that lead to the _Square of the Fallen_ had been turned off too, leaving the two villains in the only illuminated area.

Three luminous dots appeared in the shadows, three dots that belonged to a very familiar mask. A mask they had only seen once.

Through the bushes of _Altean Central Park_.

“We’re trapped,” gasped Lance, backing down and almost crashing with his friend’s chest.

Three members of the Blade, camouflaged with their black uniforms, blocked the streets to the square.

“W-we... we were just leaving,” announced Lance, raising his hands. “We don’t want any trouble, guys.”

His words were only met with silence.

They were like statues, staring at the villains behind their masks and making them feel like they were looking at their souls.

“Lance...” mumbled Hunk, moving his body until they were back to back.

“I know, Hunk,” exhaled Lance, slipping his eyes nervously over the strangers, trying not to lose sight of any of them.

Who were they? The good guys? The bad guys? Did ... did they work for Sendak?

Lance clenched his fists.

Were ... were they gonna die?

"Lance," repeated Hunk, his eyes riveted somewhere in the shadows. "There were four, right?"

“Right.”

“There’s only three.”

“ _Wha_ -?”

Something crashed against Lance’s side.

His world burst in pain when his shoulder hit the marble of the fountain.

“LANCE!”

Instinctively, the Cuban boy raised his arms and threw a water column at the member of the _Blade_ that had kicked him.

The stranger bent down and dodged the attack with almost superhuman speed, launching himself at the boy again ...

... to be intercepted by Hunk, who grabbed the _Blade’s_ arm and threw him against the facade of one of the buildings.

However, they were caught by another of his teammates before he crashed against the stone.

“We have to get out of here!” screamed Lance, using the water of the fountain to create an ice wall to separate them from the other two approaching _Blades_.

One of them climbed the wall easily and pounced on the villains.

“Who are these guys?” yelped the blue villain, creating a water whip and trying to hit the slippery attacker.

Hunk was fighting against other _Blade_ , who kept themselves out of the reach of his super strength.

"I don’t know! Acrobats? Dancers?"

 _"And how did they know we were here?"_ thought Lance, raising a new wall of ice.

The blue villain knew that he couldn’t let them get close. The _Blades_ had speed and skill in their favor, the villains would be lost in hand-to-hand combat.

“Lance! At your back!”

The Cuban boy dodged the hooded man who had tried to approach him while he was distracted trying to defend Hunk from two other members. Hunk had ripped off a streetlight from the ground and was trying to hit them with it.

“You?” yelled Lance, recognizing them.

It was the smaller _Blade_ , the one that had almost discovered them in _Central Altean Park_.

“What do you want?”

Lance froze the puddle of water under the _Blade’s_ feet, trapping their feet on ice. Running to him, the blue villain grabbed his mask, trying to rip it off his face, but the _Blade’s_ hands gripped his wrist.

“Just leave us alone!”

And then the lights were cut off, plunging the square into complete darkness.

"Lance!" shouted Hunk, somewhere to his left.

" _Hun_ -!"

Hands grabbed Lance from behind, covering his mouth and holding his arms.

 _"There was another one!"_ thought Lance, terrified, writhing like a madman and trying to break free. However, his captor was much stronger than him and so tall that Lance’s feet did not even touch the ground.

The _Blade_ began to run towards one of the exits of the square, moving in that darkness with the same ease as if the sun shone in the skies, and dragging Lance with him.

He started panicking.

_"Help!"_

Lance wanted to scream, but the hand on his mouth clenched his face so hard that he feared his jaw would be dislocated.

_"Help!"_

The leather glove gave off a smell so strong that he felt dizzy, or maybe it was because he was beginning to hyperventilate.

_"Help!"_

Hunk’s voice, screaming again and again his name, was becoming increasingly fainter ...

... fainter ...

... fainter ...

... until it finally got lost in the night.

_"Help me, please ..."_

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, cliffhander. Oops? My hand slipped?  
> I'll say in my defense that the scene was going to end later, but I dedided to cut it earlier. Otherwise, the chapter was going to be too long and I liked it more this way.
> 
> Comments about the chapter:  
> -Well, I think that all the characters I wanted to introduce are in the stories. Yes, it was absolutelly necessary to create Daniel Rogers, because I have in my mind an scene for later that's going to make you hate me so much (insert evil laugh). At the begining it was gonna be Iverson, but I think that the Warden of the High Security Prison is better.  
> -Sometime ago, I read a headcanon that Lance was good sewing and I liked it, so I made him sew the fake galaxy garrison uniforms.  
> -I couldn't resist the referenes to Brooklyn 99. No regrests. I love that show. If you hadn't seen the show yet, I really recommend it. It's one of my favourites.  
> -Alfor is older than in the flashabacks of the show for reasons (hey, at least his not dead).  
> -I had to look for Allura's mother name, because I had no idea which was. According to Voltron Wikia (it says that it's form "The Voltron Coalition Handbook"), her name is Melenor. I don't know if it's true, but I had decided to just roll with it.  
> -One anon gave me the idea for the fanbase of heroes and villains (and all their shipping), so I couldn't resist and I have included some references. And yes, it was necessary that I included the tags #WaveLightning and #BlueBlack.  
> -Another anon gave me the idea about the penis and I found it really funny, so I decided to include it on the fanfic because I wanted to write some of the Evil Trio's jokes. "Fontana di Penis" was my idea (I'm still laughing about that). Sorry not sorry.
> 
> Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter and I apologize again for taking so long. I don't know when the next chapter will be ready, but maybe I will manage to write it sooner because I have some free time on Christmas.  
> Thank you for your support and I'll read you on the next chapter!!


	7. Remember or Not Remember, That's the Question

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, earthlings! First of all, I'm really sorry for taking so long with this chapter! I had almost zero time in January and I had some trips during February, so... well, it took much longer than I thought. But here it is! And I bring you a longer chapter (the chapters keep growing... each chapter is longer than the other one and I can't stop!!). 
> 
> I use they/them as pronouns for the Blade, because Lance doesn't know their sex.
> 
> This chapter is UNBETAED. We die like men. Sorry for the mistakes.
> 
> Thanks to all of you that read, leave kudos or comments to my story, you're the fuel that keep this story going.
> 
> There's more [Fanart](https://gaaledridswan.tumblr.com/post/183071646241/fanart-with-traditional-draw-for-once-xd-based) of this fic! Check out her beautiful drawing of the chapter 4, made by [gaaledridswan](https://gaaledridswan.tumblr.com/). Give her some love, because she deserves it!
> 
> **ATTENTION (28/09/2019)** : I've have edited the beggining of the first chapter. Just the begining. I wasn't completelly convinced about how I wrote the first part, so I changed it. Not the contents, just the way they are written. I just added one detail: now Voltron isn't the only one superfamous superhero team. I though it was better to have more than one.  
> I've also added more descriptions about Allura, Keith, Hunk and Pidge's suits. Although I want people to imagine the suits however they want, I wanted to give a little more hints.

**_Chapter 7 – Remember or Not Remember, that Is the Question_ **

 

_“_ _So when you feel like hope is gone,_  
look inside you and be strong.  
And you'll finally see the truth.  
That a hero lies in you _”_

_( **Mariah Carey** – Hero)_

 

_“Am… am I gonna die?”_ thought Lance, fear gripping his throat, when they stopped on another fire escape.

Or what Lance thought it was a fire escape, judging by the sound of heavy noise of boots landing on metal. Traveling like a package on the shoulders of the _Blade_ , with his hands tied behind his back and a blindfold, made impossible to know where on the _Upper Level_ they were. Lance knew they couldn’t be too far from where he had been kidnapped, because they had to hide into an alley for several minutes not to be discovered by a _GGP_ patrol (the Cuban boy would be able to recognize anywhere the simultaneous sounds of boots hitting the asphalt).

The Blade hadn’t gagged him, but Lance knew better than try to cry for help. His jaw still hurt him due to the force his captor had used to silence him when he had tried to yell to the patrol. Lance had been sure he was going to suffocate under the gloved hand, but the moment had passed and the villain had been released, panting and desperate for an air mouthful.

“Here Ulaz,” announced the _Blade_ , startling Lance with a softer voice he had imagined. “We’re close. Extraction in five.”

Lance’s heart seemed to stop in for a second.

And he lashed out.

“NO!” screamed Lance, kneeling the Blade on the chest.

If more _Blades_ arrived and dragged him to their base, he’d never see his friends and family again.

Although he couldn’t get a good hit in that position, the movement surprised his captor and Lance almost managed to slip down. However, the _Blade_ rapidly grabbed the villain before he fell and Lance found himself hoisted over their shoulder once again, with their armor driving into his gut.

“Stop that.”

The hand grabbing his leg tightened in warning and Lance stopped squirming. It wasn’t like the villain had any idea of what was going to do if he had managed to freed himself.

“Just… just let me go. I won’t say anything to anyone,” begged Lance, trying to squint something through the heavy cloth over his eyes. “Right now, I’m a more wanted man than you, it’s not like I would go to a _GGP_ station and- _oof._ ”

The Blade (Ulaz?) secured his grip on Lance’s body and jumped.

After a few weightlessness moments, they landed on another terrace or fire escape. Something rough caressed Lance’s face and, a second later, something sharp scratched his cheek. It was small like… thorns? Leaves and thorns? It was a flower pot? Where they on an apartment’s balcony?

If there was a window close and Lance managed to break it with a kick, maybe the noise would attract…

In less than a second, Lance was on his feet and immobilized by the _Blade’s_ strong hands. With his cheek crushed against the cold armor and the hand gripping his face once again, Lance started to panic.

_“They have discovered me. Oh, God, they have discovered me… I have exhausted their patience, they’re going to kill me, they’re going to kill…”_

And then he heard the voices.

“Shiro, slow down! They are grown men, nothing’s going to happen if we arrive a few minutes later!”

“Allura, you know their specialty is attracting trouble. We shouldn’t have stopped…”

“And don’t you think that not stopping when the patrol asked is more suspicious?”

Their voices were getting closer to where Lance and Ulaz were having.

Getting closer.

Closer…

Closer…

Further.

Getting further.

They were getting further! They were leaving!

_“No, no, no!”_ mentally pleaded Lance, as the two heroes walked a short distance under the balcony where they were hiding. _“Don’t go! I’m here!”_

They hadn’t seen them. Allura and Shiro hadn’t seen them!

They were leaving!

_“Please, please… don’t go…”_

In a desperate attempt to catch their attention, Lance twisted in the _Blade’s_ grip and started to kick. He just needed a sound, just a sound that alerted them, but his screams were muffled under Ulaz’s hand and the arms circling his body stayed strong.

_“I’m here!”_

Lance’s foot hit something.

The sound of a flowerpot crashing on the asphalt repeated its echo in the silence of the street, cutting the heroes’ voices.

And then…

“LANCE!”

Lance's relief lasted only a few seconds, when his feet stopped touching the floor. Ulaz swiftly climbed and jumped, while all Lance could do was hang from Ulaz's back and curse the blindfold that prevented him from seeing if Allura or Shiro were following them.

“They are going to kick your as- _AAAH_ ”

A strong blow shook the place where Ulaz had landed after a powerful jump.

The _Blade’s_ grip on the villain loosened…

And Lance rushed to the void.

Or he would have if someone had not caught him just a second later.

The cloth was removed from his face and Lance found himself staring at Allura's bright eyes. An Allura that had grown to reach seven meters.

The girl was holding Lance with one hand. With the other hand, she was still grasping the fire escape she had shaken like a rattle and from where Ulaz hung precariously.

“Are you okay?” asked Shiro. The hero was perched on Allura’s arm and still held the blindfold in his hands.

“Oh, God, I thought I was gonna die!” gasped Lance, his heart beating wildly into his chest. “Thank you, Allura.”

“I guess you were right, Shiro,” commented Allura, with an amused smile. “They do really attract all kinds of trouble.”

“Watch out!”

During the momentary distraction, Ulaz had decided that the best course of action was to escape without their price. The _Blade_ landed on the street like a cat and tried to slide between Allura's legs, but the woman quickly moved her foot and threw them violently against the facade of the building.

Shiro grabbed Lance and jumped from the girl's back to the ground when Allura began to shrink in size. The woman took from her belt a small cylinder, which grew to form a staff, and approached the _Blade_ cautiously.

The young Japanese man turned on his arm and cut the ropes that bound Lance's arms with ease. Lance went to rub his wrists, but Shiro's hands closed around them before he could make any kind of movement.

"Are you okay? Are you hurt?" asked the hero, sliding his gaze over Lance. "We almost didn’t see you, we almost miss ..."

"I'm fine, Shiro. You saved me," interrupted Lance. "Y-you... _ahem_ ... you can let me go."

"I can...? _Oh_! I’m sorry!"

Shiro released his arms as if they burned and backed away swiftly, almost tripping over the curb.

"What are you looking for?" questioned Allura, aiming his staff at the _Blade_ , who was on their feet again.

Ulaz turned his head towards Lance, but before he could make any kind of movement, Allura cut in their line of vision with a "do not even think about it". Lance had his hands free again, so if they tried to grab him again, he would be able to defend himself. However, he was grateful that Shiro and Allura were at his side, because Lance and Hunk’s last encounter with the _Blades_ hadn’t gone well.

Oh, God, Lance hoped Hunk was fine.

"Hey, Allura ..." started Lance, but was interrupted by Shiro's voice.

“I know you.”

“What?” Lance turned around to face him, surprised by his words. “Of course you know me. Shiro, what are you…?”

However, the Japanese man was not looking at him, but Ulaz. He was looking at him with wide eyes and an expression of bewilderment, the expression of a man who has reached an impossible conclusion.

“T-that mask… I’ve seen that mask before.” Even in the dim light of the streetlamps, Lance could see that Shiro was pale as a ghost. "I-I ... I know you."

"Shiro, what are you talking about?" asked Allura, keeping an eye on the _Blade_.

Ulaz did not react, but Shiro seemed to gain security by saying the words aloud. He took some tentative steps towards the _Blade_ , but Lance placed a hand in the center of his chest to keep him from getting closer. Although the villain didn’t know what was happening, he was not going to let Shiro get within reach of such a powerful enemy when his mind seemed to be far away.

“It was you, right? I-I’m not going crazy. Those dreams are real.”

Lance tightened his grip on Shiro’s clothes when he tried to take another step.

"You were in _Daizabaal_ ," continued the hero, eyes fixed on Ulaz. "Y-you broke into... my cell. You... you got me out of there, of the dungeons... of the city ... "

"Shiro..." mused Allura, relaxing her posture. "Are you sure...?"

The woman's distraction lasted as long as it takes to flick her eyes on Shiro and back to the _Blade_ , but it was a second too long.

Ulaz grabbed the end of her staff and threw Allura against her two companions.

Lance hit the ground painfully and all parts of his battered body protested under Allura's weight. The asphalt scratched his face and the palms of his hands, and Lance's eyes filled with tears.

"NO!" shouted Shiro, trying to disentangle himself from the limb mess and almost nudging Lance in the face. "WAIT!"

The blue villain tried to use the water of the puddle they had fallen on to stop the _Blade_ as he ran by, but Ulaz was too fast.

Allura was the first one to get up. However, by the time she managed to recover her staff, the _Blade_ had long disappeared into the darkness.

" _Quiznak_!" cursed Allura, clenching her fists. The impeccable dress she had worn during the ceremony was torn, wet and muddy, and most of her hair had come out of the complicated braid, which helped complete her image of 'pissed off barbarian'. "Who are these people? And what did they want with you? I think you have questions to answer, Lance."

“Yeahh… I guess you’re right,” mumbled Lance, accepting the girl’s help to get up. “But I don’t think I’ll have many answers. Not even for the ‘Are they the good guys?’ one.”

“Answering the ‘where did you met those guys and why didn’t you tell us?’ is a good way to start.” Allura adopted a shrill little voice that probably supposed to be his: "Oh, _princess_ , we're not withholding information. Trust us ". She even made the finger guns.

"Okay, maybe we lied, but in my defense that was five days ago."

"In your _def_ \- ...? This is serious! They almost kidnapped you! What would have happened if we didn’t see you? That guy could have dragged you to who knows where and maybe the next body we found would have been yours!

“You were… worried?”

“Of course I was worried!” exclaimed Allura. She took a deep breath and rubbed the bridge of her nose. “I’m so angry at you. I can’t deal with this right now. Shiro, you… Shiro?”

Lance turned to the Japanese man, who did not react to the woman’s words.

Shiro had not moved from the asphalt except to sit up. His vacant stare was lost in the darkness of the night, towards where Ulaz had disappeared. Sitting in the puddle, with his wet clothes and his hair plastered to his face, he looked so lost that Lance did not know what to do. It seemed like a simple caress or a word would break him.

"Shiro?" repeated Allura, crouching in front of him and trying to get his attention.

“I’m going crazy,” mumbled Shiro, not looking up.

“No, you’re not.”

“I-it’s… it’s all muddled up in my head…” The hero looked at the palms of his hands, like they guarded all the answers he was looking for. “I just… I-I can’t think…”

Shiro buried his face between his hands, releasing a trembling sigh.

“You’re not crazy. It’s just has been a bad night. A really bad night,” muttered the girl, taking his wrists to take them away from his face.

“A bad night inside a bad week, inside a bad month.” Lance kneeled beside Allura but he didn’t dare to reach for Shiro. “You’ll feel better when you get out of those wet clothes and we put a hot chocolate mug between your hands. Come on, you’ll freeze your ass if we don’t pull it out of the water. And it’s a really good ass. It would be a pity.”

“I don’t…”

“Let’s go home,” insisted Allura, taking Shiro's arm to help him getting up. "There's nothing else we can do tonight."

"Okay," agreed the hero after a short pause.

Shiro slipped his arm out of Allura's grip, but he didn’t object when the woman placed a hand on his back. Lance didn’t say anything when Shiro took his hand or when he held on to it to the point of being painful.

"Let's go home."

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

“I’m fine, Hunk,” answered Lance for the fifth time.

Everyone seemed convinced that, after being almost kidnapped, he must have been traumatized, judging by the insistence that he sat on the sofa and be wrapped in blankets like a burrito. The villain didn’t deny he was still pretty nervous about what happened, but Shiro's flat was warm and, after taking off his wet uniform and drinking Hunk's special chocolate, he felt like a human being again.

_"It's Shiro who is not okay,"_ thought Lance, glancing at the Japanese man.

During their way to the flat, Shiro had stopped trembling and shied away from Allura and Lance, recomposing his “perfect hero” image. However, Lance knew that it was exactly that: just an image… a mask. Shiro hadn’t taken off his hero suit, despite the fact it was wet, and his pose was rigid and alert. It didn’tt escape to the Cuban boy’s eyes that Shiro had placed himself between them and the door of the apartment, which he hadn’t lost sight of anytime.

“There’s a group of masked people doing parkour all over the city and nobody knew about their existence?” asked Keith, who had plastered himself against Shiro. “There are cameras in every centimeter of the city!”

“You speak like it’s difficult to turn them off. Probably every camera of the _Lower Level_ had been hacked at least once,” huffed Pidge, tipping furiously in her laptop. When she looked up, her eyes stopped shining in the bright green that indicated she was using her powers. “And it seems like the ones at the _Upper Level_ too. The cameras from where they tried to kidnap Lance just show an empty street.”

“I guess that answers the question of why they hadn’t been discovered until now,” sighed Allura. “You said they called themselves the _Blade_?”

“Yep. That Ulaz guy mentioned it when he contacted their companions for the extraction,” lied Lance. He hadn’t told the heroes about Lotor yet, although that time the villain had a different reason. That reason was standing in a corner of the living room, a few minutes after having a breakdown in the street.

He took a sip of the chocolate under the attentive looks of Hunk and Pidge, who probably were wondering why he was keeping the secret.

After the scare of the almost kidnapping passed, Lance had been so scared by his friends’ fates, that he almost cried in relief when he saw them safe and sound. Keith had accompanied Pidge to the flat while Shiro and Allura went looking for Hunk and Lance. As for Hunk, once the _Blades_ had managed to grab Lance, they had left him alone. Shiro, Allura and Lance had found him wandering the streets looking for his friend.

“So we all agree that those _Blade_ guys have answers about what has been happening on the city,” intervened Shiro, who has been quiet since they arrived to his home.

“Well, if you managed to capture one of them, Hunk and I have been working in something that could squeeze information out of them,” said Pidge, with a vicious smile.

“No torture,” snapped the hero, tightening the grip on his arms.

“We… we are not going to torture anyone, Shiro.” Hunk was puzzled by Shiro’s hostile tone. “Do you really think us capable of that?”

“None of us think that,” declared Allura, firmly. Shiro looked down, guilt reflected on his face. “How exactly are you going to… extract the information?”

“With… this.”

Pidge pulled out her backpack what looked like a toy gun. The weapon resembled the gun of _Marvin the Martian_ , from the _Looney Tunes_ , but it was pink and it had a glitter heart drawn on one side.

“Are you kidding me?” spluttered Keith, after two seconds of incredulous silence.

“Would you mind elaborating that, Pidge?” asked Allura, looking at the girl like she had lost her mind.

“This baby is a miniaturized version of the _Love Ray_ ,” explained the girl. “We have been working on this since Shiro was hit by the failed _Death Ray_. It was supposed to reverse the effects of the _Love Ray_ , but as they faded with time, we decided to make a portable version of the _Ray_. Pretty cool, isn’t it?”

“We calculated the parameters of his dose from the time that Shiro was under the influence of _Ray_ ,” continued Hunk. “It was two or three weeks with the _Ray_ , right? The _MiniRAy_ will make them fall in love for a week.”

“So we just need to capture one of the _Blades_ and make them fall in love with one of us and they’ll spill all their secrets!” exclaimed Lance. “Holly _quiznak_! Pidge, Hunk, you’re geniuses!”

“And, look at that, with no torture,” quipped Pidge, looking sideways at Shiro.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean… I know you’d never do something like that,” apologized the hero. “It’s a great idea.”

“Are you sure it works?” asked Keith.

“We can try it on you,” suggested Pidge, with a sweet expression. “Just to be sure.”

Keith narrowed his eyes, but he didn’t question its effectivity again.

_Kova_ walked around the room with the arrogance of someone who owns the whole world. She wore an orange necklace that probably cost more than the whole _Evil Lair_. The cat allowed the villains to pet her for a few seconds, before turning to Shiro and rubbing against his legs. The hero picked her up and began to caress her gently. Lance found it difficult to relate the image of the sullen cat who seemed to hate everything and everyone, with the affectionate animal that purred in Shiro's arms.

Lance's gaze slid to the face of the hero, who showed a loving expression as he looked at the animal that accelerated the villain’s heartbeat.

“I think we should go!” announced Lance, getting up so fast than his feet got tangled up in the blankets and almost fell to the floor. “If we leave now, we’ll get to the _Evil Lair_ …”

“I don’t think it’s a good idea,” observed Allura, helping the villain to free himself. “You’ve almost been kidnapped and I’m sure the _Blade_ is going to try again. If you go out there, they could be successful next time.”

“And what do you suggest I do? Lock me up and throw away the key? I have a job and a life!”

Lance looked at his friends, looking for support, but he found that their gazes were stuck somewhere in the wall. The villain gave an indignant exclamation. They agreed with Allura!

“You should stay here.”

The Cuban boy turned to Shiro, who seemed even more surprised than Lance by the declaration. _Kova_ pawed at Shiro, protesting because the petting had stopped.

“He-here?” spluttered Lance. “You mean like… in _here_? In this apartment?”

“Why not? I-I mean… this… this is one of most secure the buildings of the city, aside of the palace. B-but it isn’t like we could take you there,” rambled the hero, scratching his neck. “Surveillance 24/7, cameras in every inch of the lobby... Although it's not impossible to get in, it will definitely make things difficult for them. Furthermore, nobody knows you're here. And... and... and even if they entered, I could... _uuhh_... protect you.”

Lance blinked, feeling the heat creeping on his cheeks.

He could understand the hero’s reasoning, but Lance knew that staying there was a bad idea. Staying there meant sharing space with Shiro. Seeing him waking up every morning, his grumpy pout and his bed hair, like the night he had stayed in the _Evil Lair_ but every day. Seeing him using thin pajamas and walk bare feet, petting Kova or maybe drinking coffee. Seeing him being his adorable dork self.

Staying was confirming all the domestic fantasies that Lance has indulged himself during the years, which were even more embarrassing than any of his wet dreams.

For the first time since he arrived, Lance was aware that he was wearing Shiro’s clothes: a grey shirt that showed his clavicles and black trousers that kept falling and showing the band of his boxers. Now that Lance had realized that, he couldn’t stop thinking about how he was wearing the clothes that Shiro had worn, how his skin was touching the fabric that Shiro's skin had touched...

“We aren’t asking you to give up your life, but you’ll be safer here,” intervened Allura, seeing panic in Lance’s face and misinterpreting it. “One of us will accompany you to the coffee shop and back when you finish.”

“I don’t think…” started Lance, but he was interrupted by Keith.

“We’ll watch Hunk and Pidge, in case they decide to use them to reach you.”

“B-but…”

“It’s best if none of us move around the city alone for a while,” stated Allura. "If possible, we should use crowded areas and take detours…"

“There’s only one room on this flat!” yelped Lance, red as a tomato. “And… one bed.”

Everyone stared at Lance with incredulity, except Shiro. The hero has his gaze fixed on _Kova_ , with the intensity of someone who wants to block everything else. However, Lance could see his cheeks tinted in a slight shade of pink.

“There’s an inflatable mattress in the closet,” answered Keith, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. “And the living room is big enough to put the mattress.”

“Oh,” mumbled Lance, refusing to acknowledge the little prick of disappointment. “T-that’s great.”

“So we all agree that it’s better if you stay here?”

Everyone, except _Kova_ , turned to Lance. The villain gulped under the weight of their stares.

“ _Eeh_ … I… can I go to the bathroom?”

Lance didn’t wait for an answer. He jumped over the coffee table and fled down the hall as if an army of Galras were chasing him.

"It's a bad idea, Lance," he warned his reflection, which stared back at him from the huge mirror over the sink. "Do not think about accepting it, even though it's a good idea."

Lance closed the door with a sigh and sat on the edge of the tub, which was so big that it looked like a small pool.

Shiro's bathroom was the size of Lance's room in the _Evil Lair_ and it was built in white marble, so clean and bright that the villain was afraid to use the facilities. The mirror didn’t even have water stains or toothpaste. It was uncanny.

"Bad idea, Lance. Living with your crush? Bad idea," repeated the villain. "I’m sure there are other alternatives. I could go to live with Keith… no, that’s even worst, we’d kill each other the first day…"

A few knocks at the door startled Lance, who knocked down a row of shampoos and gels that rested on the edge of the tub.

"Wait!" shouted Lance, running to the toilet bowl and pulling the chain, so they would not suspect he was hiding. Which was exactly what he had been doing.

Before he could say “come in”, Pidge had opened the door and stepped inside the bathroom.

“Pidge! What if I had been naked?” yelped Lance, covering himself like he wasn’t wearing any clothes.

“We live together, I have already seen what’s inside your pants and I have no interest in it. And I know you came here to have a breakdown, not to pee.”

“I wasn’t having a breakdown!” Pidge raised an eyebrow. “Why would I have one? After all, you’re just asking me to live with my long life crush. And yes, I know there are more important matters and that people are trying to kidnap and/or kill me, but if we add the fact that you want me to share space with Takashi Shirogane, I don’t know how much stress my body is going to endure.”

“You would be safer.”

“I know!”

Lance walked back to the bathtub and started to pick up the bottles. Unopened gels, shampoos and bath salts, too fancy and expensive for Lance’s waiter salary, even with the money from their robberies.

“I think we should look for Lotor,” announced Pidge. “The _Blade_ was chasing him, so he probably knows more about what’s happening than them. I mean… he is the bastard prince of _Daizabaal_. If someone knows what is going on inside their borders, must be him. Even if he had been on the run for years.”

“Also what happened to your father.”

“Yeah, that too,” muttered Pidge, turning her back to Lance and starting to pet a fluffy white towel. “But I wouldn’t put you or Hunk in danger to find answers, not again. My father has been on a coma for eight years and he isn’t going anywhere. If there are answers to find, they’ll still be there when this is over.”

“Now we have the GGP’s archives, maybe there’s some more information,” Lance tried to cheer her.

“We only have part of it. Shiro and I were interrupted before we copied them all.” Pidge clenched her fists. “As we waited for you, I have checked some of the info about that mission, but it doesn’t say anything else of what we already knew: _Daizabaal’_ s borders were closed eight years ago, when their internal fights started, and Lotor had to flee. If Lotor was telling the truth, that’s when Haggar established her power over the country. The GGP sent my father and Shiro as his bodyguard, to find out what happened. They disappeared when they entered the country.  Officially, the GGP lost contact with them when they arrived to the border, but if my father was able contact me until they reached the capital, I am sure they could also communicate with the GGP, so they are lying. Lotor escorted them to the capital... ”

“Probably so that your father and Shiro could inform _Altea_ about what happened to _Daizabaal_ and he could regain his power. Lotor seems the kind of person who doesn’t do something without considering the consequences and benefits.”

“I think the same,” agreed the girl. “Okay, so they were captured and disappeared for weeks. According to the reports, the GGP organized a rescue mission and they recovered my father, leaving Shiro because their intel indicated he was dead. When they discovered Shiro was alive, a few weeks later, they went back for him. After that, they cut ties with _Daizabaal_. End of the reports.”

“That is…”

“Strange, I know. All the reports contradict themselves and their stories are full of holes, but there’s nothing concrete we can use as proof,” interrupted Pidge. “I think my father and Shiro discovered something in _Daizabaal_ and that’s why they were captured… and tortured.”

“Lotor spoke about deals between the Garrison and _Daizabaal_. Maybe was that.”

“Maybe. Lotor could be lying. However… something happened there.” Pidge’s gaze turned distant. “But from our two witnesses, one is in a coma and the other one can’t remember anything or is pretending he doesn’t remember. Probably Lotor is the only one who knows what happened. Or the _Blade_.”

“Or Sendak,” added Lanced, feeling a chill run down his back. He didn’t know anything about the Galra, other than he was chasing him and Lotor, but the villain knew he was someone to fear. “Assuming he isn’t part of the _Blade_. Shiro said he had seen that uniform in _Daizabaal’s_ cells.”

“The Galaxy Garrison, Lotor, Sendak, now the _Blades_ … there’s too many players on the game board.”

Lance let out a sigh, running a hand through his hair. Two months ago, his biggest concern was building a functional _Death Ray_ and getting money to feed all their pets. Problem that he still had, but with the addition of being in mortal danger.

“I think we should look for the _Blades_. It’ll probably be easier to find than the runaway prince,” decided the Cuban boy. “Furthermore, maybe they’ll know where Lotor is hiding. They also seem to be chasing him. Also… the heroes don’t know anything about Lotor.”

“Perhaps it’s time to tell them.”

“No, not yet.” Pidge opened her mouth to protest, but Lance interrupted her. “You didn’t see how Shiro reacted when he saw Ulaz. What would happen if we spoke about Lotor? He remembered Shiro. I… I think it’s better to wait. We’ll tell them, but not today.”

“Fine. However, I don’t think it’s a good…”

A few knocks at the door made them jump.

“Lance? Pidge? Are you okay?” asked Shiro, voice muffled by the door.

“Y-yeah! Almost ready!” exclaimed Lance, as Pidge flushed the toilet.

Lance looked at her, alarmed and gesticulating wildly. It would be even weirder if they think they were peeing together instead of just talking! Pidge shrugged, apparently realizing that fact as well.

When they left the bathroom, Lance tried to do it with as much dignity as he could muster, as if they had not been doing anything bad or conspiratorial.

"You've been in there for a long time."

"You too, controlling the time and… and… and standing in the middle of this hall," replied Lance, with a huff. "You creeper."

"Considering that I am the owner of this house, I can stand anywhere without being a creeper," countered Shiro, smug. "Sorry to disappoint but I just left the living room. I came here for the inflatable mattress."

"O-oh, do you need _he_ -? Wait a minute, I haven’t said I am staying!"

"Your friends have said you will."

Lance threw Pidge a dirty look. She just shrugged and said: "It will be safer".

"I guess, if my so called _friends_ say it, I'll have to stay," huffed the villain. "It's not as if I have my own personality and ability to decide."

The girl headed to the living room, flipping Lance off.

Shiro observed their exchange with a soft smile and opened the door to his room. After a few seconds of hesitation, the Cuban boy followed him.

Shiro's room was exactly as Lance remembered from the last time he was rummaging the apartment, when the Japanese man was still under the influence of the _Love Ray_. Like the rest of the house, it was decorated in white, black and gray, which Lance found especially depressing. The floor was black wood and covered with a fluffy gray carpet. An enormous windows covered one of the walls of the room. It hadn’t much furniture and the size of the bedroom made it seem almost empty. There was a built-in wardrobe, a dresser with a mirror, a bedside table with a delicate lamp and a bed of black sheets and full of pillows.

However, there were several additions since the last time they had been there. The first one was the cat bed in the corner of the room and all the toys lying around. And the second…

"No way!" exclaimed Lance, running to the bed. " _Po_ and _Lenny_! You have them! I thought we lost them at the Carnival!"

The panda and the shark plushies rested at the top of a little mountain of pillows, cleaner than when they won them at the booth. _Po_ even had a little blue ribbon around its neck.

“I came back for them,” explained Shiro, scratching his neck with sheepish air. “We… won them during the … _emm_ … the fake date and, well, I guess they needed a place to stay.”

“You, thief! Why didn’t you tell me you had them? As far as I know, _Lenny_ belongs to me.”

Lance jumped on the bed and crawled towards the plushies. The silk sheets were soft under his hands and the villain’s knees seemed pretty comfortable over that mattress. Although he didn’t approve some heroes’ lifestyles, Lance would have given anything to sleep in a bed like that (with more reason if his bed partner was Shiro). Surely it was like sleeping in a cloud. A metaphorical cloud, because you couldn’t sleep in water condensations.

“Shiro?” asked Lance, when the other didn’t answer.

Shiro was staring at him with an intensity that made a warm sensation bloom inside Lance. When he realized that the villain had caught him, he stepped back with flushed cheeks, almost colliding with the doors of the built-in wardrobe.

"I-I... well ... I didn’t know if you still wanted it," babbled Shiro, turning his back and opening the black doors of the closet. "Y-you can keep it... if you want."

Lance looked at himself, puzzled by the hero's reaction. There was nothing out of the ordinary, he was just kneeling on the bed and hugging the two plushies. Maybe he was uncomfortable with people touching the bed? Growing up in such a big family and later living with Pidge and Hunk, Lance didn’t have many boundaries, but not everyone was like that.

“ _Nah_. Now they have become such good friends, it would be a pity to separate them.” The villain put the toys on the bed. “Sorry, Shiro, I shouldn’t have jumped on the bed.”

“D-don’t… don’t worry about that,” answered Shiro, with a strangled voice.

The hero turned around and climbed onto a design stool that didn’t seem too stable. He began to look through the boxes.

Silence fell on them. Lance could see the line of tension on Shiro’s back and his movements were abrupt, not as graceful as he was accustomed to. After everything that had happened, the villain supposed he could declare that day as “a long day”.

“Hey, Shiro… about the thing with the _Blade_ …”

“I don’t wanna talk about that.”

“It would help if you did it.”

Shiro paused his search.

“Maybe… but how can I talk about something that I don’t even understand?”

Lance didn’t know what to say to that.

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

Living with Shiro wasn’t as bad as Lance had thought.

Sure, it took a few days to get used to sharing space with a person that wasn’t Pidge or Hunk. And sure, to see a not-so-awake Shiro in his pajamas every morning was a challenge to Lance’s self-restraint. However, a week later, Lance and Shiro had managed to adapt their routines as if they had been doing it all their lives.

Lance always woke up earlier. Living in a house with his family, had meant to be woken up by the vacuum or one of his siblings. When he was at the GGHS, the classes started when the sun was peeking from the horizon, and once he left, it was any job he had managed to find.

Shiro, on the contraire, wasn’t a morning person. The villain suspected that the only reason he left the bed before ten a.m. was because he was living there. When Lance turned on the coffee machine and the smell spread around the flat, the hero resurfaced from his room, crawling like a zombie and growling something that Lance interpreted as a “good morning”. Lance always placed a cup of milk and cocoa in front of the hero, trying to contain the desire to smile and without saying a word until Shiro’s brain was able to process them.

“Why do you have a coffee machine if you don’t even like coffee?” had asked Lance the first day, after learning that Shiro just ordered a coffee at _Rolo’s_ because he was embarrassed. He had asked for the same thing than the main character of the film he had watched the night before, because he didn’t know anything about coffee.

“It came with the apartment,” had grumbled Shiro, his words muffled because he had his face plastered against the table.

Lance had taken pity of him and stopped caressing with reverence the futuristic coffee machine and the new love of his life, reaching for the pan to prepare breakfast.

From then on, Shiro and Lance always had breakfast together at the dining room table, with the sound of cartoons in the background. At first it was a little awkward, but after Shiro laughed so much that he blew milk through his nose when Lance told a joke to lighten the mood, the villain found himself chatting with the hero as if they were old friends.

Breakfast was probably Lance’s favorite part of the day.

It had also become the first step in establishing their routine:

The villain got up, deflated the mattress and kept it in a corner of the room. He opened the curtains, prepared breakfast and waited for zombie-Shiro to have breakfast together. If Shiro had a meeting or there was a call for _Black Lightning_ , Lance remained in the apartment. If Lance had to go to help at _Rolo's_ (college’s exams were getting closer and many students needed their dose of caffeine), Shiro or one of the others would accompany him. In case none of them had anything to do in the morning, they ate together whatever Shiro’s mysterious cook (Ms. Dawson) or Hunk had prepared, if he had time to stop by the apartment. In the afternoon, Lance went to his shift in the coffee shop and Shiro to whatever the Garrison or his PR had prepared, or to save the city. At night, they dined together and if they weren’t too tired, they watched a movie until their eyes began to close. Then Shiro went to bed and Lance inflated the mattress in the middle of the room and snuggled under the soft blankets that the hero had lent him.

It was so ... domestic. Better than most of Lance's fantasies.

And Lance knew it would hurt when that ended.

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

_“Y entonces esa vieja chismosa de Margarita…_ (And then Margarita, that old busybody woman…) _”_ continued Lance’s _Abuela_ (grandmother).

_“Si no tragas a la señora Margarita, no entiendo por qué continúas siendo su amiga,_ (If you can’t stand Mrs. Margarita, I don’t know why you keep being her friend) _”_ answered Lance, smiling widely.

_“Porque si no, ¿cómo iba a enterarme de los chismorreos?_ (Because if not, how would I find out about the gossip?) _”_

Lance laughed with his grandmother. He hadn’t spoken with his family since he had moved to Shiro's house, a week ago, and he had missed the conversations.

At that time just his grandparents were there. His _Abuelo_ (grandfather) was snoring in his armchair in front of the television and his _Abuela_ sat on the rolling chair in front of the family computer. The woman had stubbornly learned to use _Skype_ to "talk to his favorite grandson and the only one who was not close".  

It was almost eleven p.m. in Cuba and, as both Lance’s parents had work to do the next day, they were probably sleeping. Although, if they were not, Lance knew they’ll be soon invading the living room with his siblings.

“Hey, _Abuela_ , have you ever lost control of your powers?” asked Lance, a little nervous. He had been rummaging the best way to ask her since he had turned on Shiro’s laptop.

“Strong emotions, strong power… but harder to control. Remember that, _pececito_ (little fish).” His _Abuela’s_ face had lost all joviality and he was looking at Lance with concern shining in her deep blue eyes. Nothing escaped his Abuela’s gaze, despite her thick glasses. “Has something happened? I know that things in _Altea City_ are…”

“How strong?”

Ice covering the Carnival’s Ferris wheel. Ice covering the _High Security Prison’s_ corridors. What almost happen in the middle of the _Square of the Fallen_ when Lance faced Warden Rogers.

Lance clenched his fists. Things couldn’t go on like that. They would discover him or he would seriously hurt somebody.

He didn’t know what scared him more.

“You were destined to be the most powerful waterbender of our family,” answered his _Abuela_ , with a kind smile. “The day you were born; a powerful storm shook the city of _Varadero_. Thunder, rain, lightning so intense that turned the night into day. The sea was agitated and I told your _Abuelo_ : this child will be powerful; he has the ocean in his veins. Yes, I told everyone.”

Lance smiled. That was one of Abuela’s favorite stories.

Lance hugged his favorite cushion, the one that had printed a dog with a sailor cap beside the quote “Salty Old Sea Dog", which always made him feel better. Luckily, Pidge and Hunk had remembered to bring it with the rest of his things from the _Evil Lair_.

All his stuff had found a place between Shiro’s (his pirate mug in the kitchen, his beauty products in the bathroom, his sneakers in the middle of the living room…) and the flat seemed a little less perfect but much more personal. Pidge and Hunk had also bought Shiro an owl clock that Lance was sure it terrified him, but it was proudly exhibited in one of the shelves.

“Do you want to tell me something, _pececito_?” insisted his _Abuela_ , awakening him from his reverie. “I know you sometimes keep secrets because you don’t want to worry us, but we are your family and we love you, no matter what. Is it your superhero job?” Guilt and shame gripped Lance’s throat at the lie he had been building for years. “The press doesn’t say much about what’s happening in _Altea_ , but I’m not stupid. I’m sure it’s more serious than what they say. The sea brings winds of change; I can feel it in my old bones.”

“I… _Abuela_ … the truth is…”

“Lance!” exclaimed Lance’s mother, making them jump. “ _Mamá_ (Mom), why didn’t you tell me you were talking to Lance?”

Like summoned by supernatural powers, the rest of the family (except Luis, his wife and his children, who had their own house) entered the living room like a stampede and woke up their _Abuelo_ , who blinked and looked up in confusion. Lance couldn’t help but smile at seeing how everybody pushed and pulled, trying to fit in front of the camera.

“Because I wanted to talk to my _nieto_ (grandson),” huffed his Abuela, but left some space so his _Mamá_ could accommodate. “Is that a crime?”

“You’re very thin. Are you sure you’re eating well?”

“Hey, _hermanito_ (little bro), have you kicked any villain’s asses?”

“Marco! Language!”

“The children are at Luis’ home. Come on, Lance, how many asses?”

“Veronica! Don’t make me go for the soap!”

Lance bit his lip to keep from laughing, feeling the itch behind his eyes at the familiar scene. It seemed as if nothing had changed in the years he had been away from home. He only had the chance to visit them a few times since he came to _Altea_ , because the plane tickets were very expensive and they didn’t have any money to spare.

Despite everything that had happened, Lance was happy in _Altea City_. However, in that moment, he would have given anything to be in the middle of that room, embracing his family.

“Hey, Lance, I’m going to bed. Do you need something?”

Lance flinched and the laptop almost crashed to the floor, but he managed to catch it on time.

The villain hadn’t heard Shiro entering the living room. As life isn’t a rom-com, the hero hadn’t left the bathroom in just a towel because he had forgotten to bring the clothes, but Lance though that what he was wearing was just as indecent. Sitting in the sofa and covered by his sunflower blanket, Lance was shaken by the vision of Shiro in a black tank top with a _Bugs Bunny_ dressed as _Marilyn Monroe_ printed on it, which the villain would have sworn that it was even tighter than his _Black Lightning_ suit, and a pair of grey sweatpants that hanged dangerously low in his hips.

Lance gulped, forcing himself to stare at Shiro toweling his hair, and not the happy trail that those pants revealed.

_“Control yourself, control yourself!”_ Lance screamed mentally, wanting to pinch himself so that the pain took those sinful thoughts off his mind. _“But his muscles are still wet from the shower… NO, LANCE! CONTROL YOURSELF!”_

“Lance?”

Lance must have done something really good or really bad in other life. Being tortured that way every day and night and without being able to relieve himself in private, make everything harder. No pun intended. Even though the walls were thick enough so that the villain wouldn’t be bothered if he wanted to spend some Lance-time in the shower, he didn’t feel comfortable doing it with Shiro a few meters away.

“Lance?” repeated Shiro, who was suddenly a lot closer, watching him with those beautiful grey eyes than made Lance’s legs turn to jelly.

Luckily, he was sitting.

“Y-yes, Shiro!” yelped Lance, touching his face surreptitiously in case he had been drooling.

“I said I’m going to bed. I just wanted to know if you needed something.”

“No, I don’t… To bed? It’s just nine!”

Shiro shrugged and crouched to pick up _Kova_ , who was rubbing shamelessly against the hero’s legs. Normally the vision of Shiro bending would have given Lance the opportunity to ogle his ass, but the Cuban boy realized just how tired the hero looked. He was paler than usual and deep circles adorned his face. For the first time since Lance had moved, he wondered if Shiro slept as well as he announced each morning at the breakfast table.

_“Lance, who’s that? Turn over the laptop, I want to see him.”_

_“Oh,_ quiznak _.”_

Lance had been so distracted than he hadn’t realized when his family had stopped talking to each other to pay attention to what was happening with Lance.

“No, _Mamá_.”

_“Yes, Lance. I want to see him.”_

_“Is he a new friend? You've only introduced us to Hunk and Pidge.”_

“Don’t be noisy, Raquel,” grumbled Lance, throwing a glance at Shiro he hoped it communicated the ‘run away, save yourself while you can’.

However, either the message didn’t arrive correctly or Shiro's curiosity caused him to ignore Lance's warnings. The hero sat next to the Cuban boy with the cat in his lap, so close that Lance could feel the heat that gave off his skin, and peeked at the computer screen to find seven people looking at him as if he were the embodiment of Christmas.

"Hi," Shiro greeted them, with an awkward smile and the eyes of someone who knows he had made a mistake.

"Family, this is Shiro," Lance introduced him, seeing the inevitability of the situation. "Shiro, my family. Although I sometimes pretend that it is not."

“Lance McClain, if keep talking like that and you’ll find yourself acquainted with the _chancla_!”

His siblings started screaming and booing at the screen, with fake indignation, as his _Papá_ (Father) stayed calmly behind his family. Shiro bit his lip, trying to stay polite and not to laugh, although Lance doubted he understood a word of what was being said.

“Look at that handsome face,” cooed his Abuela, ducking under Marco’s arm to go get closer to the computer. “Lance, is that your boyfriend?”

Silence.

Then chaos exploded.

Everyone started to talk at the same time and scream, so that their question was the first to be answered. Lance sank into the couch, red as a tomato and wishing for a ray to enter the room and destroy him.

_“Boyfriend? You have a boyfriend?”_

_“Why didn’t you tell us? With such a hottie, I wouldn’t stop bragging.”_

_“Good catch,_ Lancey _!”_

_“You should have introduced us before!”_

“N-no!” spluttered Lance. “Shiro’s just a friend!”

_“Just a friend? Don’t you have eyes?”_ insisted his _Abuela_ , pointing at Shiro with the finger.

“I-I can see that Shiro is very handsome!”

_“So why haven’t you asked him out yet? If I had fifty years less and I wasn’t a married woman, I’d do it myself.”_

“ _Abuela_ , no,” groaned Lance, burying his face between his hands.

The villain looked at Shiro between his fingers, his only allied in that room. Shiro was completely frozen and staring at the screen with wide eyes. The hero opened and closed his mouth like a fish out of the water, and he was so red that he looked like a radish with a heat stroke. Lance hadn’t thought it was possible for someone to blush so much. Shiro’s cheeks were flaming ablaze and a flush crept down his neck, making Lance wonder how far did it…

_“Stop it,_ Abuela _. You’re embarrassing the poor boy! And Lance too, I guess.”_

“Thank you, Verónica. I love you too,” answered Lance, with a deadpan, as his sister flipped him off from an angle that their mother wasn’t able to see.

_“I’m just saying it as I see.”_

_“Forgive my mother-in-law, Shiro. Sincerity and lack of tact runs into their veins, with its good and bad consequences,”_ intervened Lance’s father, with a friendly smile. _“Why don’t you tell us a little bit of yourself? Lance have spoken about Pidge and Hunk, but it’s the first time he mentions you.”_

_“Yeah, Lance. Why so secretive?”_

_“Do you work with him as a superhero?"_ asked Marco. _"Is that it? Are you my brother's partner?"_

Lance's smile froze on his face. Shiro blinked, a little confused, but he recovered quickly with his expression barely changing.

"I'm a hero and I'm Lance's partner," confirmed the young man, without missing a beat. "It's… something new.”

“Very new! Very very new! So new that I had no time to tell my wonderful family!”

_“And how is it working with Lance? He doesn’t tell us much about his superhero life.”_

_“Yes, that! How is it our little brother as a hero?”_

“He’s... _uh_... he’s unpredictable. You never know what he's going to do next, but… but you're looking forward to seeing it," replied Shiro, with a small laugh. "Lance is... passionate about ... well, everything. It doesn’t matter if it’s about making coffee in the mornings, his _vill_ -superhero job, talking about his day or scolding you because you haven’t washed the mugs and they’re accumulating in the sink again. He's just so ... full of life."

Lance turned to Shiro, surprised, and found that the hero was already looking at him.

"He always manages to drag people into his enthusiasm," continued the hero. "I've been doing this work for years and I never thought there would be things I could rediscover, or that I would enjoy, but… he has shown me that I was wrong."

The villain looked down and began to scratch his cheek, trying to hide the blush on his cheeks. Why did Shiro was saying all those kinds of things? If he was trying to help him and convince his family, he definitely was overdoing it.

"He's also... innovative. And... and compassionate, and he would do anything to protect his friends. But I think his greatest superpower is that he manages to make people smile in any situation."

The lights of the laptop’s screen illuminate Shiro’s soft expression and Lance found himself not being able to look away from those grey eyes.

Raquel cleared her throat, startling them both.

“W-what I mean is… _uhh_ … I like working with him!” spluttered Shiro. It seemed that Lance wasn’t the only one who had forgotten that his family was still there, hanging from every word. “Yes, I like working with him and I hope to be able to do more of that in the future!”

The villain looked sideways to the laptop, where his family where staring at them with knowing smiles that Lance didn’t know how to interpret. Behind his parents, his brother Marco coughed with what must have been the fakest cough Lance had ever heard in his life.

“So you have been a hero for years,” said his _Mamá_ , when the silence started to become awkward. At least for Lance and Shiro, because his family seemed to be having the time of his life. “Your family must be very proud.”

“They are,” answered Shiro, with a sheepish air. “My parents died when I was a child, so my grandparents raised me. They live in Japan and I can’t see them very often, but I try to visit them at least twice a year. The last time…”

Lance watched how Shiro's body relaxed with each question he answered from his curious family. How little by little he dared to gesticulate more and more in his descriptions, to reveal small memories that he treasured in his mind. His traitorous brain couldn’t help but notice how well he fit between his chaotic family and what would happen if Lance took Shiro to Cuba. Surely his mother would prepare her famous _Tostones Rellenos_ and guilt trip Shiro to eat them because he was “too thin”. How his father would tell him how he had gotten each part of the furniture in his house, despite most of the stories were boring trips to the store. In how Shiro would enter into some kind of stupid competition with his brother Marco, or maybe Veronica would be the one who would challenge him and...

_“Stop it, Lance. Stop doing this to yourself,”_ Lance reproached himself, trying to pay attention to what his family was saying _. "Limit yourself to the sexual fantasies. Do not go to the domestic, don’t hurt yourself like this. "_

When Shiro said he was going to bed, probably it was because he was really tired. After almost an hour of conversation and despite the hero’s efforts to stay awake, it wasn’t long before he began to yawn for the umpteenth time.

"You should go to sleep," suggested Lance, placing a hand on Shiro's shoulder.

"No, I…"

"Shiro," Lance cut him off, gently. "Go to sleep. Your body will thank you in the morning."

It seemed like Shiro was going to protest, but the soft voice of Lance’s mother interrupted him.

“My son is right, _cariño_ (my dear). You look very tired.”

“Yes, maybe I should go to sleep,” mumbled Shiro, rubbing his eyes with a tired smile. ”Goodnight to everybody. It’s been a pleasure.”

Shiro got up from the couch, earning a disapproval hiss from Kova, who had been dozing in his lap. The hero stumbled a few steps, like his body had decided to go to sleep before his mind. Lance relaxed again when he saw Shiro recover his balance and followed him with his eyes until the hero disappeared down the hall. A few seconds later he heard the door of his room close.

When he looked back at the screen, he found that his entire family was watching him intently.

"What?" Lance exclaimed, somewhat defensively.

" _¿Qué no es tu novio?_ (Not your boyfriend?)" scoffed his grandmother, shaking her head. _"Oh, pececito, a veces puedes estar tan ciego…_ (Oh, little fish, you can be so blind sometimes...)"

 

*-*-*-*-*

 

Lance stared at the accurate line of constellations that shone in the ceiling on the living room, unable to sleep.

The villain hadn’t wanted to pluck the fluorescent stickers from his bedroom in the _Evil Lair_ , but aware that he wouldn’t be able sleep without the fake stars over him, Pidge and Hunk had bought him several packages. With the help of Shiro, who loved astrology, they had stuck on the ceiling the living room, in that corner that was Lance’s new room.

“Stupid brain. Go to sleep,” grumbled Lance, cuddling under the blankets and ignoring the sounds of the mattress while trying to settle.

However, his brain ignored the order, recreating once again the conversation between Shiro and his family like a bad film. There was also the fact that Shiro had been so tired, despite he always went to sleep earlier than Lance. The villain was sure he hadn’t imagined the tension on Shiro’s shoulders as he walked to his room.

“I know, brain, I know. However, it’s a problem for tomorrow-Lance, not present- _Lan_ …”

_“No… no, please…”_

“Shiro?” called out Lance, tentatively, turning his body in the mattress towards the corridor.

The villain strained his ears to hear any sound, but he was only received by silence.

After what was happening in the city, everyone was nervous. The darkness put Lance on edge, as if an enemy was hiding in every shadow, so it was not strange that Lance's mind could be playing _gam_...

_“NO! NO! HELP!”_

“SHIRO!” screamed Lance, pushing the blankets off his body and running down the hall.

The _Blade_ had found them! Or Sendak! They were attacking Shiro! The thoughts of the Cuban boy twisted with each other, as he called his power, ready to face any threat.

“Shiro!”

Lance kicked the door of Shiro’s bedroom open, but he didn’t find any fight between heroes and villains. Instead, he found Shiro tossing and turning around on the big bed.

Shiro's face was contorted in a grimace of suffering: frowning, jaw clenched and eyes moving rapidly under his eyelids. His breathing was ragged and the screams that came from his throat were heartbreaking, as he kept kicking and waving his arms.

Despite the times he had found Hunk in the same situation, the villain froze before the scene.

“STOP! PLEASE, STOP!” wailed the hero. “SENDAK!”

Lance flinched at hearing the name of Sendak from the lips of the hero. However, before he could think about that, Shiro's arm turned on, illuminating the room with its mysterious violet glow.

“Shiro, you’re safe.” Lance slowly crept closer, watching the mechanical arm. “You’re okay, nobody’s gonna hurt you.”

Shiro punched the lamp out of the bedtable. It fell to the floor, breaking into a thousand pieces.

“It’s just a dream, Shiro. You’re okay, you’re okay…”

Touching or trying to wake him up was not an option. Lance didn’t know if talking to Shiro would help, but he kept mumbling words of words of comfort and assuring Shiro that he was not in danger.

After what could have been minutes or hours, the hero woke with a last heartrending scream.

The young Japanese man leaned his back against the headboard and looked frantically around,  like a trapped animal, until his eyes fell on a very nervous Lance.

“Lance! Y-you… where… I…. I…”

“It’s midnight and we’re in your bedroom. In _Altea City_ ,” Lance quickly answered, with his most soothing voice. “You’ve had a nightmare, but you’re now awake. You’re okay, Shiro, it was just a dream.”

The hero took a breath, trying to calm down, and curled into himself, as if trying to disappear. Shaking on that huge bed and covered in sweat, he looked incredibly young, and Lance wanted nothing more than to run to him and hug him. However, the villain did not know if Shiro would appreciate the touches.

“I… I… have I w-woken you up?”

“I was already awake,” mumbled Lance, daring to take a few steps closer to the bed. “How are you?”

A cracking sound startled Lance, but it was just _Kova_ entering the room. The cat ignored the villain and jumped on the bed, plopping herself onto Shiro’s lap. The hero carefully hugged her and buried his face into her fur, as _Kova_ started to lick his neck. Lance felt somewhat guilty for contemplating such an intimate scene, but he didn’t dare to go back to his bed and leave Shiro alone with his thoughts.

“I’m… I’m good,” stammered Shiro, trying to smile and failing miserably. “I’m sorry… I-I didn’t mean to wake you up…”

“Shiro…”

“Y-you can go back to bed. I’m… I’m fine.”

“No, you’re not.”

“I will be fine,” snarled Shiro. “Go back to sleep.”

“No, I won’t! And you’re absolutely not fine!” snapped Lance, harsher that intended. Seeing Shiro flinch, Lance added in a softer tone: “You’re not fine, and that’s okay. Shiro, it’s okay not to be fine. You don’t have to pretend… not with me.”

Shiro ducked his head, focusing on petting Kova.

“You don’t have to be always the hero,” continued Lance. “Why do not you change your pajamas while I prepare some milk? Nobody likes a wet sweaty pajama, especially when in a few minutes, it will become a wet sweaty COLD pajama. And for the nightmares, there's nothing better than a good glass of hot milk with some honey."

The hero stared at him with a lost expression, but he finally nodded.

“Cool. I’ll be right back.”

Even though Lance didn’t want to leave Shiro alone, he knew it was better to give him some space.

As Lance poured the milk in Shiro’s mug (which had alien face with the quote “Thanks for believing in me”, that Lance personally loved), he realized that he had just discovered why the hero seemed so tired lately. The eye bags, the paleness… Shiro must have been suffering nightmares for days, pretending that everything was fine. And if Lance hadn’t been awake, probably he would have missed that nightmare too.

“You self-sacrificing idiot,” mumbled Lance, closing the microwave’s door with more force than needed.

The villain rummaged through the cupboards and found the jar of honey he had added to the shopping list the first day. Although Hunk preferred tea when he woke up from a bad dream, Lance rather have a glass of milk with honey, just as his _Mamá_ prepared it. He hoped it helped Shiro too.

When Lance went back to the room, Shiro had not only changed his pajamas but also the sheets and cleaned the glass of the broken lamp. The Japanese man was sitting on the edge of the bed and watched the night sky through the huge windows, as _Kova_ purred in his lap. With the moonlight illuminating his figure, Lance remembered the night of the observatory, when he had found the hero in a similar state. How many nights had Shiro had to fight the nightmares by himself?

“A glass of milk with honey, miraculous for sore throats and sleepless nights," announced Lance, placing the mug between Shiro’s hands and sitting next to him. "Drink, I want to see the bottom of this mug."

Shiro obeyed and took a small sip, while Lance pretended not to notice how his hands shook.

“It’s been years, I should be better. I _WAS_ doing better.”

“Recovery is not a science, there are good and bad days. You can’t just write a date in your calendar and decide that you’re going to stop feeling like shit from that day. As you said, you were doing better, you’ll get there again,” whispered Lance, extending a hand and petting _Kova’s_ head, who surprisingly let him. “These last weeks have been horrible and nobody can blame you because they have affected you… even more if the _Blade_ belongs to your past.”

Lance’s arm was resting against Shiro’s, so he felt when the hero’s body tensed. However, the villain remained silent.

“I don’t know if they belong to my past.”

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t remember anything… almost anything of my time of captivity. Just flashes, feelings and… and sometimes I don’t know if they are even real.”

Lance watched Shiro sip from his mug.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“I… I don’t know.”

The villain took the blanket he had retrieved from his "bed" and placed it on Shiro's shoulders, who looked at him with surprise. It was blue with patterned sunflowers. It was ugly, the color had faded over the years and it smelled strongly of naphthalene. However, Lance was not going to get rid of it ever. He loved that blanket.

“My _Abuelo_ bought this when I was born,” explained Lance, with a smile. “My _Abuela_ had bought other blanket, very expensive, but my _Abuelo_ and my brother Luis lost it a few days before my birth. He had to buy another one on the way to the hospital in the first open shop he saw, hoping my family didn’t realize. When they discovered my _Abuelo’s_ trickery, I was already in love with this blanket and they didn’t dare to take it away. It’s ugly and it has been sewed so many times… but it helped me sleep when I was a child. It still helps me sleep when I have bad nights.”

Shiro gave a small laugh and caressed the fabric gently with his fingers, like it was the most precious thing he had held in his hands.

“I have been lost for a long time,” confessed the hero, a few minutes later. “I don’t even remember my rescue. I woke up in the military hospital of the _Galaxy Garrison_ with a hole of several months in my memory and a metal arm, not knowing what I was going to do from then. They told me… they told me I was an example of survival, that I should become a hero. That I could help more people becoming a hero than with my job in the GGP. And I… I hadn’t any plan, any purpose… I was so lost. I went to the GGHS and passed all their tests. They told me that I should join a group of heroes and they offered me Voltron. I… I did it that too…”

Lance went to take the mug from Shiro’s trembling hands, but Shiro clasped Lance’s hands between his. The mug fell to the floor, miraculously not breaking, but splashing the milk all over the carpet.

Shiro held onto Lance’s hands.

“And… and I’m as lost as I was. Since I returned ... I feel that I have only followed the path that has been marked for me, because... because if I stop, if I just stop and think, I feel like everything I’ve been running from will catch me."

Shiro’s voice was wavering, as if holding back the urge to cry.

“But I guess it has finally caught me. In nights like this, I feel like I never escaped from there… from wherever I was.”

“Certainly nobody can run away forever. Maybe it has really caught you, like you said,” commented Lance, looking at their entwined hands. “However, that just means that you have to stand and face it, like you have done all your life. You just have to remember that you have a team that fights beside you… you don’t have to do it by yourself. You’re not alone.” Trying to infuse some humor, the villain added: “You also have us, the _Evil Trio_. If you need someone to piss off the Garrison, vandalize fountains or to steal a lab, we’re the team you need.”

Shiro’s eyes observed him with an intensity that froze Lance for a few seconds. The villain didn’t feel deserving of the hope he could see between the pain, the desperation and the non-spilled tears in his eyes. Unable to hold his gaze, Lance slid his hands out of Shiro’s grasp.

“Y-you should try to sleep,” croaked Lance, bending down to pick up the mug. “Even if you can’t sleep, it’s better that you lay down. You’ll be more rested that if you get up to do… whatever you do when you have nightmares”.

For a few seconds, Lance thought that Shiro wouldn’t listen to them. Finally, the hero let himself be guided down by Lance’s hands, until he was propped over the pillows.

“Sunflowers, your favorite flower,” pointed out Shiro, caressing the blanket over his shoulders with a distracted smile.

“Yeah, it is,” affirmed Lance, throwing the sheets over the hero’s body. Then he picked up _Po_ and _Lenny_ from the floor and placed them beside Shiro. “How did you know?”

“I brought you sunflowers on our… first date.”

“You did. How did you know then?”

“Just… just luck.”

Lance decided not to call out his lie. He didn’t know why Shiro wasn’t telling the truth, but he kept his mouth shut.

“Will you be okay?” asked the villain.

Shiro’s smile froze into his face and his body tensed. Buried into a mountain of pillow and black sheets, with two plushies as company, the hero seemed like a little boy waiting to be abandoned. Or maybe like an adult that was tortured and traumatized that didn’t want to be alone.

“Do… do you want me to stay with you tonight?”

“I… no… yes. Yes, please.”

The word was pronounced so softly that Lance would not have heard it had it not been for the silence of the room. Shiro stared at the sheets clenched in his fists, his white hair tuft hiding the expression on his face.

Lance climbed on the bed and lay down on the mattress, feeling it sink beneath his weight.

“This mattress is like a cloud. If I was to steal from your apartment, this would be the first thing I would take.”

Although Shiro seemed less pale than when he had entered the room, he still had that haunted look in his eyes.

Exactly like the night of the observatory.

Before he could contain himself, Lance reached out and brushed the white hairs from Shiro’s face. However, far from flinching or moving away from his touch, Shiro relaxed and closed his eyes with a sigh.

“You smell really good,” whispered Shiro.

“I-it’s… it’s the sandalwood cream,” answered Lance, in the same tone, and wondering if the hero could hear his heartbeat.

Seven years ago, at the Galaxy Garrison, Lance had talked for hours, trying to push the dark thoughts from Shiro's mind. He talked all night, until his throat dried and he fell asleep on the cold floor of the observatory. Lance was still not sure if he could help him that way, but he knew that if there was the slightest chance that he would make Shiro feel better, even if it was just a little, he would talk until he could not utter a single word.

"Hey, Shiro. Do you want to know about the first time that I made my brother Marco cry? "

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Translations** :  
>  - _Abuela_ : grandmother.  
> - _Abuelo_ : grandfather.  
> - _Nieto_ : grandson.  
> - _Hermanito_ : little brother.  
> - _Pececito_ : little fish.  
> - _Cariño_ : my dear.  
> - _Y entonces esa vieja chismosa de Margarita..._ : And then Margarita, that old busybody woman…  
> - _Si no tragas a la señora Margarita, no entiendo por qué continúas siendo su amiga_ : If you can’t stand Mrs. Margarita, I don’t know why you keep being her friend.  
> - _Porque si no, ¿cómo iba a enterarme de los chismorreos?_ : Because if not, how would I find out about the gossip?.  
> - _Tostones rellenos_ : a dish of Cuba.  
> - _¿Qué no es tu novio? Oh, pececito, a veces puedes estar tan ciego_ : Not your boyfriend? Oh, little fish, you can be so blind sometimes...
> 
> **ATTENTION** : Although my first language is spanish, I'm not from Cuba. I've watched some Cuban youtube chanels to write the conversation and for the food. However, if you're Cuban and think I've written something wrong, feel free to send me a message and I'll change it. 
> 
> I hope you liked this chapter. I wanted to summary all the info that I've been revealing in the last chapters, so I hope that you didn't find it boring. Also, I'm sorry if I made some mistakes. It takes me so long to write a chapter, that sometimes I forget some data I wrote in other chapters.
> 
> -My headcanon is that Shiro is not a morning person. When we see him in the first season, he doesn't seem to have going to sleep or he was already awoke because of nightmares or maybe routine of his time in captivity.  
> As the show didn't said anything (that I know) about Shiro's family, I have used my headcanon. I think Shiro's an only child and he was raised by his grandparents. I don't know why, but Shiro gave me that vibe.  
> -AND SHANCE! I really loved writing the last scene between Shiro and Lance. I had already planned this (among other scenes for future chapters) since the beggining. I struggled to write the first part of the chapter, but when I arrived to Shiro and Lance, the words just flowed easily.
> 
> -This is [Lance's cushion](https://www.portandlemon.com/shop/salty-old-sea-dog-cushion-2/) and this is [Shiro's mug](https://quotestosaythanks.com/product/thanks-for-believing-in-me-mug-in-black-alien-mug/) . And yes, I know that I always choose ocean-themed things for Lance, but I just love imagining Lance between shells and blue things, so yes, I'm going to do that 
> 
> Hope you all liked the chapter! (I also hope that I don't spend so many weeks with the next chapter) :DDD

**Author's Note:**

> If you want to scream about Shance or Voltron, please come into [my tumblr](https://roadnotsodark.tumblr.com/) and we'll scream together.


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